Acta Est Fabula ~5~ [Dragon!Rome x Reader]

How long it took for Romulus to fly from the Northlands back to an area where it was warm, I didn’t have a clue. The entire flight seemed like it had lasted an eternity yet it also felt like it had never happened. Perhaps it was because the shock of recent events had just numbed everything up, or maybe even because I just didn’t want to think about it. I couldn’t even remember when the icy, glacial regions of the Northlands had began to give way to green forests and running rivers and an explosion of earthy colors, rather than white everywhere. Either way, when Romulus at last landed somewhere warm, it was in an open meadow that seemed to go on forever.

“Finally,” Romulus grunted as I slowly slid off the dragon’s scaly leg. He snorted tiredly, digging his claws into the ground as he stretched his entire bronze body, looking down at me curiously. “You didn’t talk the entire way, (name). I’d like to know what happened now, if that’s all right.”

“S-Sure,” I nodded, his voice shaking me from the image of Vladimir and Nikolai gazing at us with bloodlust and rage. It was then that I noticed the fire in my veins had simmered down—I guess it had happened when we got out of the Northlands.

But still...just what had that been?

“I can’t shift to my human form just yet,” Romulus rumbled as he settled down in the tall grass of the meadow.

It was actually quite lovely, with wildflowers of various colors nestled within the yellow-green stalks of thick grass. The aroma was nothing I’d ever smelled, either, being that I had never been around so many flowers at once. It was a bit overwhelming, to be honest.

“Flying that much of a distance at that speed used up a lot of my energy,” he continued, “and I’ll have to let it replenish as a dragon. It will be faster. I can’t smell any humans or any danger around, so we should be safe here for awhile. So please, bella,” Romulus stared at me with his golden eyes, “tell me what happened.”

“...first, tell me what happened.” I firmly sat on the ground next to him, not looking into his eyes. Vladimir’s words echoed inside my mind, a constant reminder that I truly had no idea just what was going on; only bits and pieces from two completely different sides of the same story.

“What do you mean?” Romulus sounded surprised.

“How did they distract you?” I reiterated. “Vladimir told me that Nikolai created a diversion so he could carry me off. What was it?”

“...oh.” He swallowed nervously, lowered his head to the ground and taking a deep breath—which caused him to sneeze from all the pollen in the air from the flowers. I couldn’t resist a little laugh when the sneeze sent small flames out of his nostrils, only inches away from burning up the dry grassland.

“If you must know,” Romulus grumbled, his tone laden with humiliation, “that damnable brat had some chimera fur with him. I smelled it and went to attack it before it could do the same and harm you, but all I found was little hairs scattered all around a part of the forest. When I heard you screaming, I came back, but...you were already gone.” His voice dripped with a thinly veiled anger now. “Their magic left a trace in the air that I could track. That’s how I found you. But to think I was that foolish to not realize it was a trap...”

Part of my heart swelled at the notion that Romulus wanted to protect me.

The other part deflated at how cowardly Nikolai had been to trick a dragon in such a way.

“It’s all right, Romulus,” I said softly. “Everything’s okay now. And don’t be upset. Not everyone can notice that sort of thing right away. It wasn’t your fault.”

The dragon didn’t answer. He only shifted somewhat so that his wings were tucked more closely to his body and his tail curled against one side.

Taking a deep breath, I told him everything.

I told him about the Nameless; of how Vladimir and Nikolai had addressed me as “Scion” and the completely different tale I’d heard about the relationship between dragons and humans; when something had seemed to take over me and it felt as if a volcano had erupted inside of me with the strange heat powers I’d exhibited; and, of course, Vladimir telling me that Romulus was only using me.

It was better to get it out in the open than let it stew in my heart.

When I was finished, I finally got the courage to look up at Romulus. Said dragon was staring at me with an unreadable expression. I stayed quiet and dropped my gaze again, feeling uncomfortable.

“What those two humans told you,” the dragon said at last after a very awkward minute of tense silence, “is partly true.”

...partly true?

“The Nameless are indeed a group of humans who believed dragons were oppressing them. I didn’t know they still existed today.” Romulus sighed, and for a moment, I swear I saw the years he had lived through crash down in his heart. “What they called you...Scion? It is the title that the elder dragons gave you when they predicted you would be the one to hold the last of the dragoi. The Nameless must have managed to find that out.”

Everything was beginning to get even more complicated than I thought.

“What about...” My throat felt dry and my voice didn’t want to work correctly. “What about...you? Romulus, you’re not...really just using me, right?”

I hated how pathetic I sounded.

“Cosa? No, no, of course not!” Romulus shook his head. “I know that you have been told many different things, (name), but...I swear to you that I am truly here to protect you until we get to the Gates, and you can rescue this world. Per favore, amore, believe me.”

The way he said it I knew he wasn’t lying. I just couldn’t doubt Romulus. I couldn’t. He’d been here the whole time.

But that still didn’t change the fact that he might have not been telling me the entire truth.

I pushed those thoughts aside—they were just too painful—and asked, “What about the ‘powers’ they said I had? I already told you how I burned the floor and you saw what happened when I got too cold...what was that, Romulus? It’s proof that I’m...really not just normal (name) anymore, isn’t it?”

And that’s probably more frightening than everything else that’s been happening.

Romulus didn’t answer. He just stared down at the ground, scratching the dirt with his claws.

“Romulus,” the inflection on his name made him pause, “please tell me. What’s going on with me? What am I?”

“This world was created with fire.” Romulus didn’t look at me as he spoke, his deep voice rumbling with a conflicting mixture of guilt and pride. “That’s all Aegis was at some point. Fire. A big ball of fuoco blazing in the middle of the universe. And then, after eons of being nothing but that, dragons appeared. We were born of that fire. It is why we breathe it out and why it is in our blood. No dragon knows how or why we came to be, but it happened. And after it happened, dragons knew what they had to do.”

His tail twitched as he shifted again, this time so his limbs weren’t at odd angles. “My kind began using the fire to make the rest of the world. We had magic within us—the dragoi that changed everything into what it is now. And once humans were created, born out of the same fire dragons were but altered to fit the world that had been conceived for them and other creatures, my kind taught them everything they needed to know.”

I had already known that much; how dragons had made Aegis and whatnot. But not...exactly how. Nor how much fire had come into play.

“That is why, once the dragoi was entrusted to you, that fire truly became a part of you, (name).” Romulus gestured to me with a nod. “Like the dragonkind that created Aegis, the dragoi will allow you to manipulate fuoco. It is different from what I can do; only breathe fire. But you, bella, you can...make it come alive. That is how you will heal this world, amore. With fire.”

He suddenly let out a laugh. A bitter, acerbic and utterly somber one at that. “It is why other creatures fear fire. It is why humans yearn to control it. Because fire does not just destroy—when in the right hands, it creates. That is what the Scion’s destiny is.”

I was speechless. Completely, utterly speechless.

That couldn’t be me. It just couldn’t. There was no way I would be able to handle that much responsibility.

“But something still puzzles me,” Romulus added. “Even though you are the one the elders prophesied about, you shouldn’t be able to manipulate the dragoi’s power yet. I would have to help you. I suppose,” his jaw turned up in a small smile, but being that he was a dragon, it wa still massive, “you are just one very powerful girl.”

Or not as human as you think.

The sudden thought startled me. I had no idea where it came from. But there it was, hanging in midair inside my mind, mocking me.

As if it knew something I didn’t.

“(Name)? Is something wrong?” Romulus questioned, obviously not as ignorant as I wished he was at the moment.

“N-No,” I answered, trying to keep the stammer out of my voice. “It’s just...that’s a lot to take in. And I don’t...kn-know if I can do it all.”

“You can.” Romulus’s voice was softer now, and before I knew it he was bringing me in closer against him by using his wing to push me along. He stretched out his neck and turned his head to stare at me sternly, golden eyes wavering not one bit. “You can because you have me, bella. I will always be here because it is the duty I was given eight hundred years ago. But also because,” he leaned forward, scaly head only inches from mine, “I want to be here. Even if it was not my duty I would still protect you, (name). Please do not ever forget that.”

The way my heart began to beat three times faster at his words scared me more than the alien thoughts inside my head.

“Th-thank you, Romulus,” I managed to get out as I looked down at the ground, my face feeling hot and uncomfortable. “That...means a lot.”

It was extremely difficult to ignore the urge to tell him to change into his human form just so I could embrace him. Because, well, if I was being completely honest with myself...a hug sounded like the most wonderful thing in the world at that moment.

There was another silent moment between the two of us. Clearing my throat clumsily, I mumbled out, “Uh, Romulus? How do we get to the Gates from here?”

“The little detour those Nameless put us on actually did some good,” the dragon replied cheerfully, all the heavyset emotions completely vanished into his playful demeanor. I admired the fact he could switch his personality so quickly, only for the sake that I was in need of a more uplifting atmosphere to chase away the ever darkening cavalcade of thoughts in my mind. “We should be able to make it there in a week, now. As long as no more...distractions come across the road.”

“With my luck, they will,” I grumbled, crossing my arms and heaving a sigh. “I have the feeling that things aren’t going to be easy from here on out.”

Suddenly the leathery dragon wing above me was gone. As was the large, scaly body attached to it.

And then two strong arms were wrapped around me tightly, an accented voice practically squealing out, “Dios mio, you are just so cute when you look like that, (name)! I just can’t help but want to hug you all day!”

“A-Ack, R-Romulus?!” My face heated up yet again, only this time about ten times worse. “G-Get off of me, this isn’t—” And that was when I realized that the now human dragon was completely naked, being that he hadn’t taken the time to dress himself since he had immediately embraced me after transforming.

Needless to say, I had not been expecting that.

“P-put some damn clothes on, you perverted lizard!”

“Aw, but I thought you found me attractive like this, (name)!” Romulus grinned as he held me tighter, his rugged face too close to mine for comfort. It wasn’t fair that on top of a million pieces of information being thrown at me, he had to mess with my conflicting emotions like this—embracing me while nude was just too much!

“When the hell did I ever say that?!” I snapped, despising the fact that most of me didn’t want to pull away.

“You didn’t; I’m just making an inference to your blushing face!”

“Just let go of me and get dressed already! The indecency of this is making me want to punch you!”

It was going to be a long journey to the Gates. Too long, especially if Romulus had these bipolar moments the entire time. But...

I think I could learn to live with it.