My first instinct was to jump out of the bathtub, rush out of the room, grab Kyros, and run away as fast as our legs could carry us. But I suppressed that thought as soon as it came to me: I was as naked as the day I was born – well, not exactly, but still – with no clothes, no weapons, and a half dozen Imperial Knights blocking our way. No; escape, in that situation, was not an option.

My second thought was to deny everything, to pretend I didn’t know what Robert was talking about, to keep up the charade, to keep insisting I was who I’d said I was: a merchant woman trying to make her way back home along with her lady-in-waiting. But judging from my friend’s tone of voice, that wasn’t an option either – he had me completely figured out, and would probably be very offended if I told him he was wrong.

So I took the third option: I let myself sink deeper down into the copper tub, until only my head and the top of my breasts showed above the warm water, and answered Robert’s question with a question of my own.

“How did you know?”

A chuckle came from the other side of the door. “Is that a serious question? Tell me, how long have we known each other again?” Robert replied, and I took notice of the fact that he was keeping his voice down, as if he didn’t want anyone to overhear. “We’ve spent years squiring together: I know how you move, I know how you behave. And don’t think I forgot that Constance was your mother’s name.”

“…Crap,” I said. “I actually didn’t… I used it without thinking.”

“I figured, that was a huge tip-off,” Robert said. “But you’ve been quite unlucky, all things considered: no other Knight would have been able to tell.” He paused. “The Old Boar, maybe? No, probably not even him. After all, you’re my sworn brother, Adrian.” He paused again. “Are you still?”

I hesitated. “What is that supposed to mean? Just because I look like this now, it doesn’t mean…” I paused, and shook my head to clear it. “In any case, I can be your sworn sister if it makes you more comfortable.”

“…What in the seven hells?” Robert asked, and I could tell from his tone of voice that he had been startled by my reply. “That wasn’t what I meant at all.”

“It wasn’t? You weren’t talking about my…”

“No, Adrian.”

“Alright.” I paused. “Then what did you mean?”

“I was talking about that whole thing with the dragon! Kyros, right? Was that his name?”

“Yes, Kyros.”

A pause. “Is your lady-in-waiting him?”

“…Yeah.”

“Gods,” Robert swore. “How did you even… No, on second thought, I don’t want to know. What I want to know is why.”

“Why what?”

“Why you protected him. Why you were willing to fight the other Knights for his sake.”

“Because…” I squeezed my eyes, and shook my head again. “Why do you care, Robert?”

“I told you, you’re my brother, Adrian!” he answered. “Or sister, if you prefer. Do you prefer sister, actually?”

I blinked, and a weird feeling started swirling in the pit of my stomach. Had he just called me–

Robert went on before I could gather my thoughts: “No, fuck, this is entirely beside the point. Never mind your gender, I care about you, you idiot! And I’m pretty sure you care about me, too; after all, you punched me yesterday.”

“…Sorry.”

“No, Adrian, you punched me,” he said, stressing the final two words. “You could’ve just as easily stabbed me, and then I would’ve been dead instead of simply out of the fight. But you didn’t. And because of that, because of everything we went through together, I owe you to at least try to understand why you’re behaving like this before ratting you out to the other Knights. So, once again: why?”

Why indeed. There was, in fact, a pretty simple explanation for how I’d been acting; but I had to be careful about my choice of words, so that I could get through to Robert and make him see things from my point of view.

I considered what I would say for a couple long minutes, and then I spoke.

“Do you like the Emperor, Robert?”

“He is our liege lord,” Robert replied; I got the feeling that it was an unthinking answer, spoken automatically, the concept having been drilled into him since he was a young child, as it had been drilled into me – as first-born children of Knights, we had been expected to carry on the family line and the family duty, including service to the Emperor.

“That was not what I meant,” I said. “I know he is our liege lord, and that as Knights we owe him fealty. But do you like him? Do you think he’s a good person?”

It took a while for Robert to answer, and when he did, he said, “No,” so quiet I could barely hear him through the door. “No, I think he’s a terrible person and a sorry excuse for a human being. He is not a good ruler, and makes the people of the Empire suffer; not to mention the fact that he sent you out to hunt for the dragon, fully expecting you to die in the process, when you had been nothing but loyal to him.” A heavy sigh. “But what can I do about it?”

“Correct. What’s the point in trying to stand up to the Emperor? He’s unkillable: any time he’s wounded, no matter how seriously, his injuries heal almost instantly. It’s better to just let sleeping dogs lie, go on with our lives, and try not to be bothered by it all.” I paused. “That’s what I thought, too, until a few days ago.”

“What do you mean?”

“Have you ever wondered why his injuries heal so fast?”

“Magic,” Robert bit out. “Dark magic.”

“Obviously,” I said. “Now, where do you think the Emperor got his magic?”

A brief pause. “I don’t know? I never gave that any real thought.”

“And neither did I,” I replied. “But a couple days ago, I found out the answer entirely by accident: dragons.”

“Dragons…?”

“Yes, dragons. Dragon blood has extreme healing powers, just by smearing it over a wound you can cause it to heal almost instantly; and drinking it can heal even a stab to the heart.” I paused. “That’s how I’m alive right now, of course. The wound I received yesterday would’ve killed me if it hadn’t been for Kyros.”

“He healed you?”

“He did; it was the second time he’s saved my life, the first one was when he grabbed me and slowed my fall when I went over the cliff.”

“I see,” Robert said, really quietly.

I sighed. “Surely you understand by now that Kyros is not a mindless beast at all, Robert; you’ve seen proof yesterday. Instead, he’s smart, and caring, and clever, and a good friend and a good person. A much better person than the Emperor, at the very least. So when I realised why the Emperor wanted me – wanted us – to bring Kyros’ heart back to him… I just couldn’t do it. I decided to help him get away, get over the border, where the Emperor won’t be able to reach him.”

“Makes sense,” came the answer through the door. “That explains why you behaved as you did.”

“Yeah,” I said. “So now the choice is yours, Robert: you can rat us out, tell the other Knights who we are, and take us back to the capital; to be killed, probably. Or, you can pretend you haven’t figured out who we are, and let us go on our way.” I relaxed even more into the water, which by then had turned tepid. “Choose, brother.”

The silence stretched. Seconds became a minute, which became several minutes, as my friend considered my words, and what exactly they meant.

Then he swore.

“Alright,” he said, his voice low and bitter. “Alright. Damn it, damn it all to the seventh hell and even beyond, I just can’t do it. I can’t give you up, Adrian. Not after all we’ve been through, even though you’re going against your oath as a Knight. I see your reasoning and, even if I wish I didn’t, I agree with it. And also, I just can’t betray my sister.” He paused. “Still feels weird saying that. But considering how you look, ‘brother’ would feel even weirder.”

“I’m okay with ‘sister’ if you are,” I supplied, after a moment’s hesitation.

“Yeah. Alright, okay,” he answered. “It’s settled, then. Tomorrow we’ll find horses for the two of you, and I’ll bring you to the border myself.”

“You don’t have to–”

“I’ll feel better if I see you go across,” he cut me off. “That way, I’ll be satisfied that you’re safe. And that’s what’s important, even if it means I’ll never see you again, which is likely.” When I didn’t comment, he continued, “The other Knights won’t have any objections; taking care of other people is part of a Knight’s duties, after all.”

“That it is,” I said, approvingly.

“Okay,” he said, and I could hear him get up. “I’ll have my son bring some clothes and some food to your room, for both you and your… friend. And I’ll send the innkeeper up to refill the tub for him, the water must be cold by now.”

“Thank you, Robert.”

“You can thank me when you’re safe,” he answered. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

His departure was marked by heavy footsteps retreating from the door.

-----

“How was the bath?” I asked, as Kyros walked back into the room, his body wrapped in a linen sheet.

“Very good,” he replied. “I never knew just basking into hot water like that could feel so good: now I see why you like it so much.”

I nodded, and gestured to the spot next to me on the bed; he silently accepted the invitation, and sat down. “Some food?” I asked. “Edmund brought it up while you were in the tub.”

“Yeah, sure,” Kyros said, taking the plate I was offering him: he grabbed some of the meat off it and shoved it into his mouth. “It’s good,” he said, chewing loudly.

“Use a fork, you beast,” I laughed. “And eat your vegetables too.”

“Yes, Mom,” he said, with a cheeky grin.

I blinked, and stared at him, my eyes widening. “What…?” I said.

Kyros blinked in return, and frowned. “Crap, I screwed up, didn’t I? I’m sorry, we went over this, even. I do remember you don’t like being called… But since this is a different word, it just slipped out.” He paused. “Are you okay, Adrian?”

I shook myself. “I… I am, actually? I’m alright,” I replied. “It’s weird, but I don’t really mind being called Mom. Unlike that… other thing.”

“Alright,” Kyros replied. “I’m glad. And you do give off a ‘Mom’ kind of vibe, actually, especially with how you look right now: you took care of me while we were in the woods, and you said you took care of Edmund, too, even if for a short time, right? This water tastes weird,” he added, after taking a sip from his cup.

“It’s not water, it’s ale,” I said. “And yes, I did take care of Edmund. Good kid.” I smiled ruefully. “Makes me a bit sad that I never had children of my own.”

“Why’s that, actually?” Kyros asked. “You’re an amazing person, anyone would be glad to have you as a spouse.”

“Well, the thing is. You kinda need a man and a woman to make a child. It’s how things usually go.”

Kyros took a deep gulp from his cup, draining it, and filled it again from the pitcher that was on the table. “Yes, and?”

“And…” I began; then I paused, and gulped. “I don’t want to have a child if love isn’t involved. And I don’t fall in love with women.”

There was a long moment of silence, then Kyros placed a hand on my shoulder. “It’s alright, Adrian. I’m not going to judge you for that.”

“Thank you,” I nodded. “It’s… Gods, this was actually the first time I’ve ever said it out loud. It feels good to put it out there.”

“You can always put anything out there with me, Adrian,” Kyros said. “Anything at all. If there’s someone you like, you can tell me.” He paused. “Robert, maybe?”

“…What?” I said indignantly. “Kyros! I do like Robert, but we grew up together, we’re like brother and sister! It would feel gross to do anything with him!”

“Yeah, okay,” he said, nodding pensively. “Then what about that other guy? The big one, with grey hair?”

“Duncan? The Boar Knight? What even in the seven hells?! He’s like thirty years my senior!”

Kyros shrugged, and took another gulp from his cup. “Age doesn’t really factor in when love is involved. After all, you’re older than I am.”

“Yes, but not thirty–” I began, and then stopped; I looked at him, studying his face carefully. “What did you just say?”

“I… Um,” he said. “Never mind.”

“No, no, no,” I said. “You’re not getting out of this so easily, kid. What did you just say?”

Kyros looked up, his eyes meeting mine. “I admitted I like you? Kind of, at least,” he said.

I looked at him, at a loss for words.

“I didn’t mean for it to happen!” he said. “It just did. It’s just, I felt a bit weird around you for the past few days, maybe a week, but I didn’t realise what it was, but when I saw you look like…” He gestured at me. “It just clicked. I realised what it was.”

“So you only like me because I’m a woman now?” I asked, with some reproach.

“No!” he replied. “No, that’s not it. You being a woman made me realise I like you, but I did even before. And I will keep liking you no matter what you look like, Adrian. I’m not sorry about that.”

I kept looking at him, and I realised that his eyes were a bit unfocused; I glanced down at the cup in his hand. “You’re only saying that because you’re drunk,” I said.

He tilted his head to the side in his infuriatingly endearing way, and looked at me curiously. “What does ‘drunk’ mean?”

I hesitated. “Did you ever drink alcohol before, Kyros? Ale, or beer, or wine.”

“Nope, never,” he answered. “This is my first time. Tastes good, actually.” He drained his cup once more, and reached for the pitcher.

“No you don’t,” I said, gently pushing his hand away. “That’s enough booze for you tonight, especially since we have a full day tomorrow.”

“Spoilsport,” he said with a maddeningly cute pout on his lips. “But alright.”

He set his empty cup and plate down on the table. Then he leaned forward, and kissed me lightly on the lips.

“Good night, Adrian,” he said; he lay down in bed, turned over, and was snoring softly before I realised what had happened.

-----

“Good morning, my ladies,” Robert greeted us as we descended the stairs into the inn’s main room. “Did you have a restful night?”

I nodded, and curtsied. “Yes, we slept quite well. Thank you, Sir Robert.”

Robert nodded in return. “Come, we have some food ready to break fast with.” He gestured towards a table, which was just off to the side of the door leading outside, and Kyros and I walked to it and sat down.

“I have talked with the other Knights,” Robert said, as we started eating salted meat, bread, and vegetables (I had to give Kyros a significant glance before he took some). “They’ve agreed to let me accompany you to the border; my son is waiting outside with three horses for us. We can be off as soon as we’ve finished eating.

I glanced around, and saw that there were a handful of other Knights in the room, giving us glances out of the corner of their eyes, but without a hint of concern: they were all enjoying their own breakfasts. I nodded. “Thank you, Sir Robert,” I said again. “Maryam and I will never forget your kindness.”

“You’re welcome, Lady Constance,” Robert said, a mild smile on his lips.

We kept eating in silence for a few minutes, until our plates were clear and our bellies full.

“Well, shall we be off?” Robert asked.

“Yes, of course,” I said. “Let me just finish my drink.”

I brought my cup to my lips, and drained the liquid inside; as I did so, some of my long hair – I was still not used to it – tickled my nose, making it itch a bit.

I set the cup down on the table, and I sneezed.

An orange-red burst of flames escaped my lips and nose, and shot halfway through the inn’s common room, before disappearing as I clamped my hands over my mouth.

Everything froze; everyone’s heads turned towards me, eyes wide in shock and awe.

The Knights started to get up.

“Shit!” I swore. “Come on!”

I grabbed Kyros’ hand, dragged him to his feet, and made a beeline from the door, ignoring the shouts and clamouring from behind me; we were about to burst outside, when we bumped into the large frame of Duncan, the Boar Knight, who was walking into the inn right at that moment.

“Oof, be careful, my lady,” he chided me. “Now, what’s this commotion all about?” he asked, looking up from me to the other Knights.

“Duncan! Stop them!” one of them shouted.

“What?”

“She breathed fire!” another one said. “Stop them!”

Duncan blinked, and looked back down at Kyros and I, just as I was trying to squeeze past him to make my way outside.

“Hold it just one second,” he said, and he clamped a hand around my wrist, holding me in place.

I swore. “Kyros, go!” I shouted, pushing him out. “Run!”

“But…” Kyros said, looking back at me.

“Run!” I repeated. “Don’t mind me, I’ll be okay!”

Kyros looked at me, clearly hesitating; but then he nodded, and with a popping sound he burst out of his clothes and unfolded into his full dragon form. As everyone in town gave him a bewildered stare, he spread his wings–

“Not so fast, Sir Dragon,” Duncan said, still holding tight onto my arm; Kyros stopped, and looked down at him. “That’s right, I knew you could understand me. Here’s the thing: I know you could fly away right now, and we will never be able to catch you. We can’t stop you from doing that.”

He reached down, grabbed a dagger from a sheath in his belt, and pointed it at my neck.

“But if you leave, she dies.”

“…What?” Kyros rumbled in his deep dragon’s voice. “You would–”

“The same goes if you try to breathe fire,” Duncan went on. “Though I don’t think you’ll be so stupid as to do that, or you’ll hit her too. And you don’t want to hurt her, do you?”

Kyros looked down at me: I’d never noticed how soulful his dragon eyes looked. I shook my head. “No, Kyros,” I said. “Just go. Don’t mind me. Go.”

“Quiet, you,” Duncan said, pushing the tip of his dagger deeper against my neck; a rivulet of deep-red blood started running down from my pierced skin. Duncan looked back up at Kyros. “So what will it be, Sir Dragon? Make your choice: leave, or stay.”

Kyros kept looking at us, kept looking at me, for a moment longer, then sighed a deep sigh; with another pop, he turned back into humanoid form – into his usual male form, in fact. He looked at me with sad eyes.

“You win,” he said. “I surrender.”