Chapter One

"Hadrian, is it true you're sleeping with the Atlantean prince?"

"Hadrian, what about the dance you shared with the Atlantean prince?"

"How will this affect your next big event?"

"Will you continue dancing in Atlantis?"

I stood at the entrance of the concert hall, smiling tightly as paparazzi flashed their cameras in my face, microphones shoved to my mouth like some kind of bukkake reenactment. I stroked the sides of my outfit, seeking out the light bumpiness of the glitter sprayed over smooth soft silk, the camera flashes making the glitter sparkle and shine in the lights. The air smelled of smoke and expensive perfumes. The lights were too intense.

I don't want to be here.

"Hadrian, are you involved with the Atlantean prince or not?" A reporter demanded, thrusting his microphone right up to my lips, nearly clocking me in the mouth.

"Excuse me," a deep rumbling baritone growled suddenly, making my smile turn genuine now, "You need to back the fuck up." I glanced to my right to see my bodyguard, Kodi, appear. He was an impressive male, standing at six foot eight with short dark curly hair and insidious green eyes lined with eyeliner. His black BDUs and monstrously huge boots just added to his air of deadly intent.

The reporter gaped like a fish, opening and closing his mouth in disbelief, before his expression screwed up in preparation to fight, except another reporter snagged his arm and dragged him back from Kodi.

"You idiot! Don't fuck with that guy," the other reporter hissed, "They call him the Dragon." The angry reporter relaxed to degree at the name and glanced at Kodi, scanning him up and down and deciding maybe it was smarter not to challenge the near seven foot monstrosity in front of him. Much to my relief as well.

"Answer a question," Kodi muttered to me, "Or get the fuck out." I inclined my head and looked to the reporters, who still held their microphones out, but at a distance now, all eyes on me expectantly.

"I've already informed the reporters that my relationship with the Atlantean prince is nothing, but platonic," I explained calmly, "He is my dear sweet cousin and I wish to make him feel welcome to the outside world. I see nothing wrong with making him comfortable with family and friends. If the world sees my behavior as something sexual, that is entirely on them and not a reflection of who I am, or who my cousin is. Now, if you'll excuse me, I would like to return home to rest for the evening." Even with the dismissal, the reporters started up another roar of questions that I promptly ignored and turned to Kodi, who nodded at the silent command. He put his hand on my shoulder and we teleported from the concert hall in Hades back to my home in Purgatory.

My fathers' mansion was exactly what you would expect from a powerful ruler. Three stories of high class mediterranean architecture doe in beiges and blues with palm trees and plants galore in the main courtyard and a pair of massive double doors that led to a lobby decked out from floor to ceiling in marble with columns and a winding staircase. The cherry on the sundae was a chandelier the size of a Prius dangling in the middle of the room.

We appeared in the lobby a second later.

As soon as we landed, Kodi thrust his fists up and glared at the ceiling.

"Fuck those guys," he snarled, making me smirk in amusement, "They've been asking the same questions for almost two weeks and you keep giving them the same answer and they still ask them! How stupid can you get? Ugh! I hate reporters! Fuck 'em!"

"Without them, we wouldn't know what's happening in the world," I pointed out, earning pause from Kodi, who wrinkled his nose as if he were prepared to debate that, "Anyway, we're home now, that's all that matters." Kodi shrugged his shoulders, but nodded and gestured for me to head up the stairs first, but I shook my head.

"I'm starving," I replied, earning a droll stare from Kodi before he led the way into the kitchen.

My idea of starving and his idea of starving were two very different ideas of starving. Starting with the fact that Kodi had actually almost starved to death twice in his life, and mine just being a simple craving for a bowl of fruit.

"The concert went pretty well," Kodi said as he followed me around the kitchen as I got out bowls of fruit to pick at while we talked, "Your outfit looks comfortable for once, though, I question the glitter choice. And your critics were blown away. Yet somehow, you don't seem to be in a good mood." It wasn't that I was in a bad mood in particular. It was more like... I was in a curious mood.

Because I felt it again while I was on stage; someone was watching me. And I didn't mean typically watching me like the rest of the crowd filling the seats. I meant someone was watching me intently, every move, every gesture, from the moment I walked into the building to the moment I walked out. I felt someone in particular watching me the whole time.

Of course, a quick look around revealed absolutely nothing every time, because everyone was watching me and it was hard to pick out exactly who was giving me goosebumps, making me tingle, making me... ache. It was a strange sensation to have for someone I'd never met, couldn't see, couldn't even pick out from a crowd. Yet, it didn't change the fact that I felt it. It awoke something in me I couldn't quite identify. Perhaps yearning for something new? Something different? A true challenge?

Tis not to say that dancing wasn't a challenge. It certainly carried its own weights; from a proper landing to a proper outfit to even literally, a proper weight. It was all fun and challenging, certainly, but I needed something more... Something that made my heart race, something that gave me purpose.

Perhaps that was who was watching me. Someone who could challenge me.

The prospect was thrilling, and yet, I couldn't find who it was. I would have to keep a closer eye out for whoever was stalking me at the concerts.

"I felt it," I said at last, making Kodi glance up from where he was struggling with a bag of chips. I held my hand out and he handed me the bag, which I tore open and handed over to him and he took with a nod.

"You mean your stalker?" Kodi asked. I inclined my head. I'd discussed this with Kodi before. I didn't feel like I was being threatened, so there was no need to call the authorities or alert my parents. I didn't want to scare away whoever was watching me. I wanted to find out for myself who it was. Besides, my family knew I was more than capable of handling myself.

After all, Kodi was just a decoy. He was just there to scare off the weaker offenders. He could certainly throw down when it came to it, but Kodi wasn't much of a fighter. He preferred fighting via video games or board games. He was a typical nerd, who just happened to like working out, but knew not a single thing when it came to fighting.

The Dragon, they called him. Or rather, that was what they called me without realizing it was me. Because all the reports of stalkers who'd been nearly killed for having attempted to assault me or kidnap me, all of whom had become my victims.

Of course, no one would believe that sweet, delicate Hadrian could possibly harm a soul. He was so gentle and graceful and kind. Certainly he would never try to harm a fly.

It was the perfect ploy. Lesser opponents would face off with Kodi, have their ass handed to them, and the day would be over. The stronger, bolder opponents would hunt me down, sneak into my room perhaps, or even my dressing room at concerts. I would destroy them and Kodi would take the credit.

It gave me the upper hand on my enemies.

"Yes," I answered Kodi, "I felt them again today." Kodi grimaced.

"That's so creepy. I don't know how you stand it."

"This one is different."

"Okay, but he's still stalking you, so it's still creepy."

"They don't mean any harm."

"So you say," Kodi drawled, "I would've thrown his ass out a window by now."

"I would've tried that already if I knew who it was," I responded in frustration, "I don't know anything about them. I can't quite pick them out in a crowd. It's difficult with so many people crammed into those concert halls, but you'd think I'd find one person out of the bunch."

"Are you sure you don't wanna call the authorities? This guy could turn out to be dangerous."

"I can handle myself, you know that very well."

"Okay, but even if you can't tell who he is, he must be really good at hiding. He might be the one guy you can't handle," Kodi muttered, stuffing a handful of chips in his mouth, spilling some on the counter. I stared at him as he scrambled to clean up his mess.

"I hope so," I murmured. Kodi gave me a scowl.

"Why are you so weird?" He asked.

"I was born this way," I deadpanned. Kodi shook his head.

"Well, anyway, setting aside the creepy stalker, you had a great night tonight. Cheer up a little and do something to celebrate. Why not go out with the Cousins?" He asked. I frowned. That would certainly be a way to celebrate, but I was a little partied out after spending a couple weeks with my cousins.

We were typically a group that consisted of Seven, the Atlantean prince the reporters thought I was sweet on. His actual boyfriend, also one of the cousins, Keros. His sister, Holly. Both were children of my uncles Cerberus and Blaine. Then there was Floki, who was the son of Dania and Alexis, my aunt and uncle. Daphne May, daughter of my uncles Zelios and Noe. And then there was Wren, son of my uncles Stanton and Alaric. Amenti, daughter of Menoetius and Arikos. She just sort of became a cousin. It was much easier to just call each other cousin anyway. Besides, we treated each other like family. If one of us was threatened, we were all threatened. We were a force to be reckoned with. Even the media referred to us as the Cousins. Of course, that wasn't always a good thing, considering we as a group tended to cause trouble wherever we go. According to our parents anyway.

We just happened to run into trouble everywhere we went because we didn't always stay quiet when things went awry. Like the time we caught a group of males cornering a female in an alleyway in Atlantis. We ended up on the news the next morning for having nearly beaten to death five innocent males.

Horseshit.

They were attempting to assault a deaf female in an alley while she was on the clock at work. She'd been throwing out the garbage and didn't hear them come up behind her. Thankfully we had been kicked out of that same bar and ended up in the same alleyway where we took our time throttling the males who dared to think themselves higher for nothing more than having a cock.

A cock did not make a male.

A soul is what made a male, or a female, or whatever other specification someone fell under.

Anyway, that was one of many reasons we had a reputation. We just tended to find trouble, and not always on purpose. It just sort of happened.

However, I was kind of cousined out. I needed a break from the group for a while, and I'm sure they felt the same way. Even we got sick of each other sometimes and tended to brawl together in our own group if we had so much exposure to each other, so it was good to take breaks.

In the meantime, all I had was Lumen and Kodi. Lumen was in Atlantis still, finishing up her final concert. She'd probably be home soon. Kodi wasn't all that entertaining for company since all he did was play video games or talk about video games. Or how much he wanted a girlfriend. Something I couldn't particularly help with considering I'd never had a partner before in my life.

It wasn't that I wasn't attractive or never courted. I knew I was attractive, just look at my parents, my grandparents. The genetics were clear. And I'd had plenty of people propose a relationship with me in the past, but nothing about those relationships seemed worth it. There was just a lack of spark.

I wanted something... inspiring.

Something emotional and raw and beautiful. Something passionate and wild.

On top of that, someone who could handle me. As Kodi so lovingly stated, I wasn't exactly normal by anyone's standards. I didn't do it on purpose. It wasn't me trying to stand out from the crowd. I just didn't understand why certain things were seen as normal. It made no sense to me, these boxes that we created and labeled and try to cram people into to better categorize ourselves, like we were nothing more than encyclopedias being packed away.

The world was so different and unique. Each person was certainly a book, yes, but with a story all their own. Their own covers, their own designs. They didn't deserve to be packed away in boxes. They deserved to be displayed out in the open.

That was my view on the world anyway. It wasn't right and it wasn't wrong, it just was.

"You've got that faraway look on your face," Kodi pointed out, making me raise an eyebrow.

"Thinking," I replied, making Kodi blow out a long sigh.

"Don't hurt yourself," he answered. I stared at him, then picked up a blueberry and threw it at his face, making him laugh.

"Let's try not to make a mess in the kitchen," a voice said, making Kodi and I look up to see my father, Thorn, coming into the room from the lobby.

Thorn was by no means a small male, but he was shorter than me and that was something I had trouble getting used to, considering I spent my whole childhood looking up to him, literally and figuratively. He was tall in his own way, with wavy brown hair that he currently had tied back from his face, home to five days worth of beard, bags under tired hazel eyes. He was wearing just a loose robe over his tank top and shorts. He looked like he'd just crawled out of his office for the first time today.

"Hey," Kodi greeted, "You look like shit."

"Nice to see you too, Kodi," Thorn deadpanned, then shook his head and looked at me, "How was the concert?"

"Good," I replied, "Everything went well. The critics loved it. The reporters are still asking about Seven, but other than that, I would say things went smoothly." Thorn wrinkled his nose.

"You shouldn't have danced with him."

"He wanted to learn how to dance."

"Yeah, but you don't grind up on someone and not expect the reporters to go nuts about it," Thorn said, making me frown as he went to the fridge to grab out a carton of milk, which he promptly drank directly out of. That was going to piss off my dad like nothing else. My dad being Ambrosius. Thorn was always father, Ambrosius was always dad. For Lumen, they were both daddy, which made for a fun time deciphering who was who.

"It was just dancing," I told him. Father shrugged as he finished taking several swigs of milk and put the carton back, making both Kodi and I grimace.

"Dancing is its own language. Your language just happened to be sexual," he pointed out, making me frown further.

"My language was just getting to know him. I did not intend for it to be sexual at all. Why does everyone think I'm a sexual person?" I asked, turning to Kodi, who shrugged.

"I dunno. Everyone's got sex on the mind, I guess," he admitted, then looked at Thorn, "Which, by the way, gross." Father glared at him, then reached over and snagged the bag of chips from him, making him protest.

"No," Father said drolly, taking a few chips out to eat before he looked at me, "I'm just telling you to be more careful, Hadrian. That's all. I know you don't mean anything by it, but the rest of the world doesn't see it that way."

"I am not going to tailor myself for the rest of the world," I answered sternly. Father stared at me for the longest time, and then this... sort of sad smile came across his face.

"I know. I wouldn't have it any other way, you know that," he said, setting the chips aside, which Kodi stole back, "I just don't want the world to hurt you for being different is all."

"I can handle it," I answered.

"I don't want you to," Father replied, then shook his head, "Anyway, I'm exhausted. I'm probably gonna go to bed early. If you see dad, tell him I'm upstairs in bed. You guys have a goodnight." He leaned over and kissed me on the temple, leaving behind a greasy chip stain before he left. I rubbed at my temple, then looked at Kodi, who was finishing off the bag of chips.

"I've got sex on the mind," Kodi muttered, "Do you have any idea how long it's been since I've slept with someone?"

"I've never slept with someone," I said flatly.

"And what a waste," Kodi exclaimed, then sighed, "It's been like three months. I'm aching. I need something. But every girl I play with online is human, lesbian, or into really kinky shit. I just want a normal demon chick who likes Skyrim and doesn't like whips." I stared at him.

"That's strangely specific," I replied. Kodi shrugged.

"Well, humans break too easily, so there's that. Plus, it's illegal. Second, lesbians just don't really like males. Go figure, right? And the kinky shit just isn't up my alley. I don't like pain during sex. It's just a major turn off. Also, Skyrim is my main go to right now, so that'd be great to have someone fight the Imperial army with," he explained, making me shake my head.

"You're not even slightly interested in trying something new?" I asked.

"I mean, I don't mind bouncing over to League of Legends sometimes."

"No, I mean the sex."

"Oh. Yeah, no. If I wanted pain during sex, I'd fuck a chainsaw."

"Okay, that's extreme."

"Yeah, so are whips and chains. No thanks. I like vanilla sex. Something romantic," Kodi paused and got pink in the cheeks, which was strangely adorable, "Achem. But, you know, most people just want hook ups nowadays, which is a little disappointing. No one really wants a relationship anymore, which you know, I respect that, but I want a committed relationship, so."

"Best of luck on that," I said, earning a nod from Kodi, "I'm going to head upstairs for the night."

"Alright, I'm gonna go play Skyrim for six hours. I'll be up by eight, though, so we can go to that concert in Hades," he said. I nodded and retreated from the kitchen, heading upstairs to my bedroom. I felt a ripple of power the moment I got upstairs and immediately veered off and headed for Lumen's bedroom. I paused at the door, knocked once and waited.

"Come in," came Lumen's delicate call. I opened the door and entered her room.

Her room was such a calming, peaceful place. Everything was done in shades of blue and white, soft and delicate like Lumen herself. Her massive canopy bed was home to several stuffed toys, ranging from a stuffed teddy bear to a plush shark toy from the aquarium. I didn't recall her going to any aquariums lately, though.

Lumen herself was sitting at her vanity, brushing her short dark hair. She placed her brush down and turned when I came in, her hazel eyes warm and inviting. She was still in her costume, a white dress that was longer in the back than in the front, with the skirt part painted in blues and purples like someone had done a watercolor design on it.

"How did it go?" I asked, coming over to sit on the ottoman at the end of the bed. Lumen sighed, averting her eyes.

"I screwed up at the end," she muttered, "I was so close, but I ended up missing the landing and hit the floor on my face. It was... really embarrassing." I frowned as she got up and came over to sit next to me. She plopped down, her dress flaring out, and she leaned her head to the side, resting it on my shoulder. I reached out and took her hand, her long delicate fingers sliding in between mine.

"I'm sorry," I said softly, "You worked very hard."

"It just wasn't enough."

"Perhaps not this time, but you will do it next time. I'm confident in you."

"At least someone is," Lumen sighed, making me shake my head, "How about yours? How'd yours go?"

"Excellent. The critics loved it. But..."

"But?"

"I felt someone watching me again," I said, making Lumen lift her head and turn to frown at me, "I still don't know who it is. Why they're doing it. They're not like the others." Lumen cocked her head.

"Does it feel dangerous?" She asked. I shook my head.

"No. They're just... watching. I want to know who it is, though."

"Should we get guards to show up at the concerts?"

"No, that'll spook whoever it is. I'll have to figure it out for myself," I replied, glancing at her. Lumen had a faraway look in her eyes before she blinked and nodded in understanding. She continued to rest her head on my shoulder and I in turn rested my head against hers. We sat there for a while in silence, simply enjoying each others' company.

I liked that I could do this with Lumen. That we were close enough to simply accept the others' company and nothing more. We were both exhausted, both needed someone that we felt comfortable with to soothe our tired souls. So we simply sat for a while together, listening to the silence of the room around us, watching the curtains billow gently in the wind before Lumen decided she was tired and wanted to head to bed. I left her room to give her space and retreated to my own where I did my nightly routine of washing my face and preparing my outfits for the next day. I was just settling down into the blankets when my cell phone rang and I sighed, rolling over in bed to pick it up off the nightstand, turning it over to stare at the caller ID. I grimaced and debated ignoring it, but knew it would just ring all night long if I didn't answer it now, so I swiped the screen and brought it to my ear.

"Hello, Claire," I said, greeting my manager, who sighed heavily into the phone.

"At least you picked up this time," she muttered, "Anyway, I just wanted to congratulate you on finishing that last performance. Excellent work tonight. The critics absolutely loved it. They're already printing stories about your next performance tomorrow. Are you ready for it? Do you need me to do anything? I can deal with the reporters this time, so you don't have to answer anymore of those questions about your cousin. Sorry I wasn't there last night. My son's still a little sick."

"No, you're quite alright. I've got everything figured out for the day, so please, feel free to relax. I can handle the reporters if you can't get away--"

"No, no, no, that's fine. I know how much you hate the paparazzi so I'll handle them no problem. Brian can handle being alone for a few hours. He's not an infant."

"If you're quite sure."

"I am. Certainly. Is there anything else you need from me before I let you go? Should I make sure they have a meal delivered to your dressing room tomorrow?"

"Mmm... Perhaps. If it's the same place as last time, no thank you. If you do Edame's, I will happily enjoy anything you get me from there."

"Edame's it is then. I'll make sure it's sent over in time for lunch. Alright, thank you again, Hadrian. Have a good night. Get plenty of rest, and don't forget to do your stretches in the morning."

"Of course. Have a good evening." I hung up and dropped the phone on the nightstand before rolling over to stare at the window where the curtains fluttered gently in the wind. The room was now quiet, save for the soft rushing of the wind through the window and the faintest of thumping from downstairs, which meant dad was probably in his studio practicing. I debated joining him, then decided against it. I didn't want my dad to see my routine for tomorrow.

It wasn't that I hated my dad. I loved him as much as any son would love their sire. It was just the fact that my dad could be quite critical when it came to dancing. One wrong move and he was on me like white on rice to correct me or change the structure altogether, which I did not need the night before a performance. I needed rest.

Of course, rest did not come easy that night.

I had strange dreams all night. I had strange dreams often, but lately, they were different. Dreams of dragons dancing in the wind in the moonlight. I wondered what it meant. Every attempt to Google it had come up with nothing and I was not particularly fond of psychics so I didn't seek them out for answers. Instead, I was left wondering what the dreams could possibly mean. Surely one of the dragons represented myself, but the other one... The other one was black with hazel eyes, with scales that gleamed rainbow like oil in the light. He was beautiful and proud the way he danced and he was so dedicated to the other dragon, the way he twirled around him and slid in so close, like he wanted nothing more than to spend eternity dancing with the other dragon, with... me.

Or perhaps, it meant nothing at all. Perhaps it was the craving I had in my soul for something more deep and intense, a connection, a real connection, with another person.

How pathetic, I thought bitterly. To crave and vye for something as trivial as a relationship, as Kodi put it. Relationships just... happened. To seek it seemed so desperate, and yet I couldn't help myself. My soul yearned for something to spark a fire within me, something that would change my life, and yet every day was the same mundane routine.

Perhaps it wasn't my time yet, I decided for the billionth time. Perhaps my one true love, as my dad called it often, was just waiting to meet me. It would happen when it was time to happen.

Too bad that time isn't now.