Dragons of Cinderhollow Bundle

by Hawke Oakley

  “We shall.”

  “Good. I’ll see the two of you then.”

  I rolled my eyes playfully. Of course Lorenzo already knew it was about Gabriel. I bet he already figured he was pregnant, too.

  After hanging up, I turned to my mate. He had a raised brow.

  “Let me guess,” he began, “The Sky Cafe isn’t on the ground, is it?”

  We arrived fifteen minutes early, mostly due to Gabriel’s insistence that we be on time.

  “Failed step one,” I said with a grin.

  He shushed me. “Being early counts as being on time.”

  He looked nervous. His hair was combed back neatly but he kept running his hand back through it to make sure it stayed in place. The beautiful white shirt he wore was tailored just for him - Gabriel seemed flustered when I told him I memorized his measurements - and his simple black pants accentuated his nice ass. Not that anybody else but me was looking at it, of course.

  “Are you sure he’s gonna like me?” Gabriel asked for the hundredth time. I knew he meant my alpha-father.

  “Of course he will.”

  “Okay, but what if he doesn’t?”

  I sighed and curled an arm around Gabe’s shoulders. “Then I’ll banish him for being a bad dad.”

  Gabriel’s eyes widened. “Is that a thing?”

  I smirked. “It could be if my dad was a bad dad. But I promise he isn’t.”

  That seemed to calm him down. He breathed deeply a few times.

  “Honey, why are you so nervous anyway?” I asked.

  He frowned. “I don’t know. I mean, I’ve never been introduced to my mate’s dad before, obviously. And I haven’t had the best luck with being judged by older alphas.”

  “He’s not going to judge you,” I promised. “Just be yourself.”

  “I’ll try.”

  It was a bit crowded - the Sky Cafe was always popular, but especially on weekend evenings - so I held Gabe around the waist and kept him close to me. We had reservations, but we decided to wait near the landing deck for the rest of our party. Dragons and other flying shifters made their way onto the sturdy wood deck before changing forms and joining the rest of the waiting groups.

  When a raven landed gracefully on the deck, Gabe gasped. “Oh! Is that Ruby?”

  It was. She shifted and joined us with a prim smile. “Hello, Dante. Gabriel.”

  She had a knowing gleam in her eyes, like she already suspected the reason for this little get-together, but she didn’t mention it.

  Soon another familiar figure banked towards the landing deck. The silver dragon flared his wings and touched down. But behind him, there was another dragon - a deep, gunmetal grey. My dad.

  Gabe tensed and clutched my arm. “Is that…?”

  “Yes.” I kissed the top of his head reassuringly.

  Both the dragons shifted and made their way over to us. My older brother looked the same as usual, with his roguish silver hair tucked behind his ears and his broad shoulders held back in proper posture. He was almost as tall as my alpha-father, who walked beside him. Dad’s dragon form was bigger than the last time I saw it, which happened with age, and I could see the wise wrinkles in his face when he smiled at me now.

  “Dad,” I said, going to give him a hug. His strong arms were firm but gentle.

  “Hello, Dante,” he said. When we pulled away, he glanced over to Gabriel and said, “And who is this handsome young omega?”

  The huge blush that spread across Gabe’s face almost made me laugh but I held it back for his sake. I went back to my mate’s side and affectionately put my arm around him.

  “Dad, this is Gabriel,” I told him proudly.

  Gabriel held out a shaky hand. “Nice to meet you, sir.”

  Instantly, Lorenzo and my dad started laughing. Gabe’s blush spread to his ears.

  “Oh,” Dad said with a grin, “please call me Anton.”

  When the clock hit seven, we were escorted to our reserved table. It was an outdoor spot right by the reinforced wooden guardrail with a beautiful view of Cinderhollow in between the mountains.

  Gabriel was a bit spooked by the height at first, but relaxed when he tested the hardwood floors a few times - and hopefully, when he realized he was surrounded by three adult alpha dragons who would never let him fall.

  We took our seats in the black leather chairs, which contrasted sharply with the pure white table cloth.

  “This is the fanciest restaurant I’ve ever seen in my life,” Gabriel murmured.

  “There was a fancier one, but I like the view here better,” I told him.

  The waitress took our drink orders. Lorenzo, Ruby and my dad had a bit of wine. Gabe got a non-alcoholic daiquiri, and I joined him in no-alcohol solidarity with a black coffee.

  “So, Dante,” Dad began, folding his hands over the table. “Tell me how the two of you met.”

  “It was kind of a lucky accident.” I put my hand on Gabriel’s. “So, Ruby was assigned on an omega scouting mission recently. I went with her as an escort just in case she ran into trouble.”

  Dad nodded. “Good lad.”

  Lorenzo raised a brow. “If I recall when you two left the barrier, Dante wasn’t so enthused about the situation, since the sequel of his favorite book came out and he would have rather stayed home.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Well, I went anyway and that’s what matters. So, it’s all fine and dandy until Ruby starts telling me about this place we were flying over called Stoneheart pack.”

  My dad’s eyes widened at the mention of Stoneheart.

  “Which Dante had no prior knowledge of,” Ruby added with a fun little wink in my direction.

  “Anyways,” I stressed, “that’s when I saw Gabe being attacked by humans.”

  Gabriel shifted in his seat beside me. “It was a good thing Dante found me when he did. I probably wouldn’t have made it without his help.”

  “That is quite serious,” Dad agreed.

  “I’ve never heard of a Stoneheart wolf leaving the walls alive,” Lorenzo added gravely.

  Gabe squeezed my hand.

  “Did you leave on your own?” Dad asked.

  We all knew what he was really asking - if he had been thrown out for refusing to mate or not.

  “Um, I did,” Gabriel said, “but it wasn’t like I had much of a choice. At the time, I didn’t want to mate with any of the alphas in my pack.”

  “So they forced you to leave,” Lorenzo murmured, shaking his head.

  My dad rested his chin on the top of his folded hands. “You must harbor some negative feelings about your old pack.”

  Gabe stared at the table. His fingers curled around his glass absentmindedly.

  “I should. I mean, I did, especially at the time. There was no excuse for how they treated me, but at the same time… It was my home, you know?” he said. “Sometimes I still feel guilty for leaving it behind.”

  A growl rose in my throat. “You shouldn’t. What happened was their fault, not yours.”

  “I know.” He shook his head. “But it’s not that. I guess I realized they were just scared. They don’t know any other way to live, you know?”

  I didn’t understand why Gabriel was suddenly defending his old pack. What they did to him was completely unacceptable. Unforgivable. If it were up to me, I’d fly there and give them all a piece of my mind.

  “Anyway, I’m glad I live here now, but sometimes I just think about all the omegas like me who don’t have a choice.” He shrugged. “That’s all.”

  My dad nodded sagely. “That’s wise, Gabriel. You’re a brave young man to go through what you have and still think about others.”

  That much was true. Still, I was glad Gabe was safe here with me and my family. He and our baby were my first priority.

  I realized I still hadn’t broken the news yet.

  “So, Gabe,” I began, “do you wanna…?”

  “Hm? Oh!” He suddenly remembered why we were here and turned shy again. He grasped my h
and. “Um… Dante, would you do the honors?”

  I chuckled. We were just telling my family about the baby. There was no need to be so formal.

  “Well, I’m sure a bunch of you have figured it out already, but I’ll make it official,” I said. “Gabriel is pregnant.”

  Ruby pretended to act surprised - and she was pretty good at it. If I didn’t know her any better, I might have thought she actually was surprised. Lorenzo smiled wide. He definitely already knew.

  But the smile that bloomed across my dad’s face was something else. The news was genuinely new to him.

  “Oh, Dante,” he murmured, getting to his feet, “you’re going to be a father?”

  “Sure am,” I said with a grin.

  Gabe and I both stood to meet my dad, who embraced us at the same time. Gabriel nearly got lost among us two tall alphas.

  My dad took Gabe’s hands in his own. “Congratulations, both of you. I’m truly very happy.”

  Gabe flushed ear-to-ear. “Thank you, Mr. Anton.”

  My dad didn’t even bother correcting him this time. He just hugged Gabe again.

  “If you two need anything, do not hesitate to tell me,” he said firmly. “My grandbaby will never want for anything.”

  “I understand. Thank you.”

  As we sat back down, I shot Lorenzo a grin. “I bet dad thought you’d be the first one to make him a grandfather, huh?”

  Lorenzo sighed and shrugged. “Fair enough. I am excited to be an uncle, though.”

  My dad smiled sadly now as he murmured, “I wish your daddy was here to see this.”

  My heart clenched. Everyone sitting around the table understood that he was talking about Lorenzo and I’s omega-father.

  “Me too,” I said softly.

  Gabe glanced at me with his big eyes and held my hand. “I lost both my parents when I was young. Since the pack is small and closed-off, disease spreads fast…” He looked at my dad. “But I’m glad the baby will have at least one grandparent.”

  My dad and Gabe both looked like they were about to cry, but they smiled at each other.

  It turned out Gabe’s fears about my dad not liking him were unfounded after all.

  “How did you lose him?” Gabe asked suddenly on the way home from the restaurant.

  We took the long way back, walking on the street to stretch our legs. The moon hung like a beacon in the sky between the mountains and a cool breeze filled the air.

  “My omega-father?” I said.

  Gabe nodded. “You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to.”

  “It’s alright. You’re my mate. You deserve to know.” I ran my thumb over the back of his hand. “My dad, he… He went out on a scouting mission, like the one Ruby and I were on. But back then, we just weren’t as careful.”

  The words felt bitter in my mouth. I hated speaking badly of my tribe, but this was a sore spot for me.

  Gabe didn’t speak, but he listened to every word.

  “He didn't go with an escort. He went by himself, thinking that a lone omega would be more reassuring for any potential omegas wanting to come to our tribe,” I continued. “This happened about ten years ago. Both Lorenzo and I were adults, so my birth-dad didn’t think we were in any danger. And he was a grown man, too, you know? And a dragon at that. He shouldn’t have been in any danger.”

  I had to pause. My fists clenched. Gabe soothed me by stroking my hands in circular motions. Again, he waited for me to continue. I bit my lip, then went on.

  “My dad didn’t know how to use magic,” I finally said. “When he ended up in a pack that wasn’t too happy to see a dragon trying to steal their omegas, they attacked him. Damaged his wings so he couldn’t fly.” My throat felt tight. “Without magic, he wasn’t able to defend himself…”

  “Shh. You don’t have to talk anymore,” Gabe said, stroking my arm.

  I nodded, unable to speak, and leaned on his head.

  “Is that why you wanted me to learn magic so badly?” Gabe asked softly after a moment.

  “Yes,” I growled. “Gods forbid, something happens to me… I want you to be safe. You and our baby.”

  “I understand.” He leaned up and kissed me. “I love you, Dante.”

  I wrapped my arms around him and kissed him deeply in the middle of the street, not caring who was watching. “I love you, Gabe.”

  10

  Gabriel

  “You’re late,” Ryu complained as I walked in the door, but there was the usual good-natured sparkle in his dark eyes. “Were you and Dante up to naughty activities again?”

  “When aren’t we?” I replied with a roll of my eyes.

  He chuckled. He offered me a cup of tea, as he always did. “He’s not here today, is he?”

  “No. He went baby clothes shopping with Ruby,” I told him. “Ruby insisted on going with him, lest he pick out something ugly. And probably so that he doesn’t buy one million outfits at once.”

  Ryu nodded. “Yes, it was good of Ruby to do that. Dante would probably try to secretly dress up your baby in outfits that his favorite book characters wear.”

  “Tell me about it,” I said with a playful groan. “He’s already probably thinking of how to name the baby after a book protagonist or something.”

  We had a laugh at Dante’s expense, then Ryu clapped his hands together. “So. Have you been practicing your magic skills at home?” he asked.

  I shrugged. “As much as I can. Like the breathing exercises and trying to notice it around me and stuff.”

  All of my training so far had been basics, but before the weekend Ryu had mentioned wanting to teach me more advanced skills soon. Ever since Dante had told me about his omega-father, my drive to learn magic had intensified. I wanted to be strong in my own right, like he said. But I also wanted Dante to be reassured that I could defend myself.

  “Good,” Ryu said. “You’ve done well so far for a shifter who wasn’t raised among magic, and doesn’t have the natural gift that dragons do. I want to try and see if you can dip your feet into elemental magic.”

  “What’s that?” I asked.

  “It’s your natural elemental affinity. Dante’s is fire, and mine is water. That’s why fire magic comes easily to him, and water to me.” He looked me over and rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “If I had to guess, I would think as a wolf your natural element would be earth. Maybe air.”

  I rubbed my arm. Sensing energies and being able to see the barrier was one thing, but what Ryu was talking about seemed like it was on a whole other level. “Can I even do magic like that?”

  “I’ve heard of a few non-dragons being able to do elemental magic, yes,” Ryu said. He smiled. “And we’ll never know until we try. What do you say?”

  I nodded. “Let’s do it.”

  Ryu disappeared into the back room and returned with a pot of soil. He reached out and put a single seed in my hand and gestured to the dirt. I blinked, confused.

  “What am I supposed to do?” I asked.

  “Plant the seed, and try to feel the energy of the soil,” he said solemnly.

  I did as he said, burying the seed deep into the potted earth.

  Closing my eyes and shutting out the world, I tried to focus on the soil surrounding the seed. I sensed clay, mulch, moisture… and life within the seed itself. I thought of my own baby, growing inside me the way the seed was growing within the soil. I poured my feelings into the pot in my hands while imagining the growth of both my baby and the seed. I channeled hope, love and kindness until -

  Ryu gasped. “Oh, Gabriel!”

  It broke my concentration. My eyes snapped open. “What?”

  “Look!” Ryu gestured down. When I looked at the soil, I gasped too. Poking out of the top layer of soil was a tiny green sprout.

  “Did I do that?” I asked incredulously.

  Ryu’s eyes were wide. “Yes! It was amazing!”

  I couldn’t believe it. “Are you sure you didn’t exchange the pots or something when my eyes w
ere closed?”

  Ryu chuckled. “No, I promise. This was all you.”

  I stared at the baby sprout, feeling overwhelming affection for a plant, of all things. It must have been the hormones.

  “I guess I was right,” Ryu said contemplatively. “Your natural affinity is to the earth element.”

  “This is all so weird,” I muttered. “I can’t believe I just did magic.”

  “You sure did.” He hummed in thought. “You’re actually progressing much faster than I anticipated. You do have a natural alignment with magic, that’s for sure, but…”

  He trailed off and I looked at him curiously. “But what?”

  “I have a theory,” he said. “Would you mind trying out a few tests for me, Gabriel?”

  “Of course,” I said. I felt an amazing rush from using magic - real magic - to make that seed grow. It was a high, like what flying must have been for Dante. I couldn’t wait to get my hands on another pot of soil.

  Throughout the afternoon, Ryu presented me with multiple types of plants. Soon the floor was littered with loose potting soil. I manipulated many seeds into sprouting early, making leaves grow just enough for Ryu to notice, and even stretching the roots of Ryu’s wilting bonsai tree so that it absorbed more water. He was particularly excited about that one.

  “Gabriel, you have an extraordinary power!” he cried. “This is so exciting. Dante’s gonna be thrilled when he finds out.”

  Sweat trickled down my brow from exertion, but I didn’t even care. I felt amazing. I had this secret power inside of me that I didn’t even know about.

  “I want to try to make a flower bloom,” I told Ryu.

  He smiled but said, “Maybe you should take a break. It’s been a long day and you’ve already done so much.”

  “Come on, I feel fine,” I said. I wiped the sweat from my brow. “Just one more. I really want to see if this works.”

  “Well, okay, but then I’m sending you home to rest,” Ryu said. He picked up a small ceramic pot from the front counter and brought it to me. I recognized it as the stubborn carnation that refused to bloom.