Writing Prompt: SECRET FIRE

Being the love child of a favourite palace servant and a dragon shifter, your gifts don't reveal themselves until the evening of a long-awaited ball, when a man twice your age tries to get you into a compromising situation.

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Serendipity! Nobody seemed to have noticed her entering the ballroom through the hidden passages meant for the servants. Like them, she loved to go unnoticed, to watch from the shadows as those who held the power did as they pleased. Attention from the nobles rarely resulted in something good. A short glance around the room revealed that nothing had changed, everyone was busy swaying to the music or exchanging the latest gossip, and nobody was paying her any attention. Aelin straightened her spine, smoothed her silken dress with an unconscious movement of her hands, and exhaled. Then she lifted her head and fixed her target. Her eyes locked on her prey, she advanced straight towards the buffet, where wondrous delicacies from all over the kingdom were piled up on silver platters in such magnificent ways that you could almost consider them pieces of art. Pieces of art that were about to be devoured by a ravenous she-dragon.

Just when she had chosen the sweets, she decided to eat on her first attack on the buffet, Aelin heard the high-pitched giggling of duchess Fiona and her posse drifting towards her over the soft waltz that was playing at the moment. Whining internally, she let her head loll slightly backward for a short moment while exasperatedly closing her eyes, before straightening her position and forcing a smile. When she turned around, Aelin was greeted with the sight of the duchess and her three noble friends closing the distance between them. She curtsied politely and tried not to gag when the cloud of perfume surrounding the nobles in front of her assaulted her sensitive nose.
"Duchess Fiona, what a surprise to see you here", she voiced sweetly.
"Oh my", answered Fiona tartly, opening her fan to feign friendliness while her voice was dripping with badly hidden malignity. "I was just beginning to think you wouldn't show. What a pleasure it is to see you on such a meaningful occasion. When I saw your dress, I just couldn't refrain myself from coming over to tell you that I have never realised how good you could actually look when dressed up properly."
Aelin gritted her teeth and forced the smile to stay on her face in front of such blatant insults.
"Why, thank you for your compliments. Your dresses also look mighty fine, especially the embroidery. Since all four of you wear the same pattern, there seems to be a current trend that I have failed to notice. If only I had known, I would have made sure to get a dress that looks exactly like yours. Besides, I am shocked at your surprise, as I would never forgo such an important event as the Midsummer night's ball. Speaking of, I still have to pay the king my respect by dedicating him my first dance. If you will excuse me..."

Regretfully putting down her full plate, Aelin sent the duchess and her friends a last fake smile and rushed off in a swirl of violet silk to link arms with an unsuspecting nobleman, sweeping him into a waltz on the dance floor. While the flustered man steadily tried to engage her into polite conversation, Aelin let her amber gaze sweep over the guests gracing the ball with their sparkling presences. Nobles of all rank filled the room, intersected by the occasional dragon shifter. They held considerable esteem here in the kingdom of Lhengra, unlike the neighbouring countries where they were looked down on for their 'barbaric' traditions. Aelin snorted, earning herself a confused glance from her dance partner, who flinched and rapidly averted his gaze once his eyes crossed her amber ones.
Right, she thought sarcastically. 'Barbaric traditions'. Those were just other words to hide the fact that people feared them. A fully-grown and trained dragon shifter in their beast form? There was nothing much that could stand in their way. The only reason Lhengra accepted them so readily was due to the king binding the dragon shifters by dark magic. Free in mind and will, the powerful beasts were able to do as they wished, but the king's spell prevented them from ever harming the Lhengran nobility. And since being respectfully feared was still better than being chased to death by a mob of angry villagers with pitchforks, most of the shifter clan had quit the neighbouring countries to build a life in the capital of this small kingdom.

The end of the song interrupted her musing. Aelin gracefully came to a stop and dipped into a curtsy. "Thanks for the dance."
"It was an honour", offered her young dance partner carefully. She spared him an indulging, though slightly bored smile and gathered her skirts around her to leave the dance floor. The harpies had left the buffet and Aelin wanted nothing more than to continue her ravaging of the desserts where she had been forced to let off.
Five minutes later she made her way towards the alcoves hidden behind the deep crimson curtains, the spoils of her attack on the buffet piling high on her plate. While languorously snacking on the luxurious treats, she relaxed her back against the cold stone wall. This was by far the best place to listen in on all the gossip currently circulating. Most of it was really boring; the best marriage prospects, who was having affairs with whom, and other bagatelle faux pas committed by the lesser nobility. Aelin was just getting bored when a small group of ladies stopped next to her hiding spot.

"Have you seen how angry duchess Fiona is?", whispered one of them.
"By Raia, she was fuming", added the second one gleefully. "No wonder, after how Lady Aelin humiliated her in front of everyone."
Said lady pricked her ears to not miss a single spoken word.
"The duchess should have learned by now that Lady Aelin is not to be trifled with", responded the first, "She might be a half-breed bastard, but she is the daughter of the great General Glazius and she has been acknowledged by the king himself."
Aelin silently nodded to herself. She was quite proud of her father's achievements, even if such emotions were not that appreciated in high society. Many of the dragon shifters had integrated the small country's military forces and were the reason for the current peace. After the bloody battle of Dshingen, in which her father played a considerable part, no one dared to wage war on Lhengra. His victory had earned him the title of Lord, and even though she herself was the product of his love affair with a castle servant, the king granted Aelin the title of Lady, thus acknowledging her and her position as Lord Glazius' heir.
"Jealousy does not look good on a noblewoman", was the advice the third lady imparted on her friends. "And you have to admit that Lady Aelin is quite the beauty with those golden dragon-eyes and the silvery hair. I bet even her beast form is radiant!"
"Oh Elenore!", chided the first one gently. "Haven't you heard that she is unable to shapeshift? Despite her heritage, she is no more dragon than you are. All she has is their beastly beauty and her keen pride. Why do you think Duchess Fiona dares to pick on her at all?"
The second lady nodded fiercely. "Right! Who in their right mind would provoke a dragon shifter, even if they can't hurt us? They are so scary when angry!"

Behind the curtains, Aelin had to reign in the feeling of emptiness clogging up her throat at the mention of her disappointing lack of power. Besides her pretty appearance and her acute senses, she, the daughter of the great General, really was nothing like those powerful beasts roaming the skies. However much she wanted to, she did not grow scales and wings. She had tried every trick known to her clan, had implored the all-mighty goddess Raia and even jumped from a cliff to coax out an inner beast that apparently just wasn't there. Other shifters had told her that they felt the essence of their other form like a second skin and that changing forms came as easy to them as breathing. And even though she loved the comfortable life she was living, passing her time reading, riding, and dancing on balls, Aelin could not shake the feeling that she was missing a crucial part of who she should be.
When she forced her focus back to the ongoing conversation, the group had turned to discuss marriage prospects. Aelin rolled her eyes. Why were those women so desperate? Half of the males in this room were too immature to even hold a decent conversation with, and the other half was way too old for them. She was inclined to just leave her current spot and go back to the dance floor to lose herself in the music when her name came up again.

"... has not taken his eyes off Lady Aelin for the whole evening!"
"Yes! She is so lucky! The emissary from the Jeridan Empire is so handsome. I heard he is in line for the post of Grand Vizier. As his wife, any Lhengran lady would end up in a really powerful position."
"No wonder Duchess Fiona was especially nasty today. She had her eyes set on him ever since his arrival, but he hasn't even spared her a glance."
Aelin tried to visualise the emissary's face and had to suppress a growl when she succeeded. His greedy looks on their first meeting as well as his subservient behaviour towards her father had immediately revealed his true intentions to her. She shivered from disgust and decided to interrupt the tasteless gushing of the lovestruck nobles next to her spot in the alcove. Confidently striding out from behind the curtains, she ignored the startled gasps of the surprised gossips.
"Duchess Fiona should be glad that the emissary holds no interest for her. Although...", Aelin stopped and cocked her head to the side slightly, "maybe this sort of ambitious man suits her tastes well."
Her voice turned disinterested as she continued: "The Jeridan Empire's emissary is not interested in me. What he is looking for is to obtain the favour and support of the dragon shifter's clan for his nation, even though I suppose that he is not personally disinclined to this marriage. I have heard him proclaim that he would love the chance to 'tame' such a magnificently wild creature, after all."
Her voice had turned traitorously clipped at the end of her sentence, contrasting with the cold demeanour that she forcefully tried to uphold. Ignoring the stunned looks on the noblewomen's faces, Aelin discarded her plans of going back to the dance floor, where the damned emissary might be waiting for her, and decided to flee to the balcony instead. After hurrying down the room and dodging several clusters of guests that obstructed her path, she pushed out on the balcony and tilted her head towards the glittering night sky. The glass doors shut behind her, cutting off the incessant noise of the ballroom. She hadn't even noticed how much it had grated on her nerves until the night embraced her with silken silence and a fresh breeze ruffled her silvery hair.

Not even five minutes had passed when the opening of the doors to the ballroom and the swell of the party's noise indicated that she was not alone anymore. Keeping her back to the palace, Aelin braced her forearms on the stone balcony's railing and let her gaze roam the Royal Garden that was hidden by the shadows and only partially illuminated by the moon's pale reflection on the grey gravel paths.
"It is a beautiful night, even though it is getting fresh". The deep voice betrayed the gender of the person intruding on her peaceful getaway. "Though I am surprised to see you outside, Lady Aelin."
She slowly turned around, sharpening her senses. She knew that voice, had heard it somewhere, but she couldn't put a face to it. The man was of strong build and his big figure loomed in the shadows; his face hidden by the dark. He moved closer, his gait reminding her of a predator stalking his prey, and uneasiness slowly spread inside of her.
When he entered the area lit by the decorative glass lamps and she recognized him as one of the fighters in her father's shifter regiment, her unease only settled slightly. He was a brutal dragon, known for his proclivity of fighting, his penchant for luxury and his habit of taking women to his bed. Several times, Aelin had heard rumours about young servant girls who had left the royal palace after having been forced to pay him company. Where it not for his impressive fighting ability and the esteem he held in the eyes of the more conservative dragon shifters, her father would have already expelled him from his regiment. And while she tried her best to steer clear of him, she had always relied on his respect for her father and the strict hierarchical system of the dragon shifters in which her father held a significantly more important rang than him, and thought that the giant shifter would not try anything on her.
"Sir Kenton", she greeted curtly, trying to keep her composure as to not let him know how much he ruffled her scales.
"Don't be so cold, Aelin. I don't wish you harm." His voice was neutral, and she could not discern any hidden meaning, but her unease didn't settle.
"Of course you don't wish me harm, you are a faithful dragon knight, after all", she responded. "Still, it would do you well to remember that the king granted me the title of Lady, so please address me as such."
Aelin sincerely hoped that reminding him of her status would keep him in line.
"I don't bow to the king's rules, though", replied the dragon knight, smirking. "The only authority I acknowledge is my dragon lord."
Aelin straightened her posture and looked him straight in the eyes. "Even then, I am sure that a little more respect would benefit you. I am convinced that my father would appreciate it if you treated me respectfully. And now please excuse me; as you pointed out correctly, it is getting quite cold and I should return to the ball."
She lifted the hem of her violet dress and made to move towards the warm lights of the ballroom when suddenly Sir Kenton's arm shot out and blocked her path.

"My, my, LADY Aelin. Why would you leave me so suddenly? I admire your fire, little she-dragon. Although... You are not a real dragon, are you? The human blood in your veins has deprived you of the mighty power of wings and scales and claws, hasn't it?"
Aelin instinctively took a step back. But Sir Kenton had not finished.
"Don't push me away, little one. I only came out here to protect you. A defenceless damsel like you alone out here in the dark. Who knows what beasts may roam the gardens at night?"
He took a step closer and Aelin sucked in a shaky breath. As he loomed over her, she realized for the first time how small she really was. Compared to this big predator, she felt like a small mouse being toyed with by the cat. 'You are the only beast out here that I fear at the moment', she thought. Had he always been so threatening?
"I kindly thank you for your protection, but I think I will return to the festivities now, so your services won't be required anymore."
Aelin sharpened her voice, but the knight didn't take the hint and continued to block her path.
"Ah, but I don't think you understand", drawled Sir Kenton, backing her into the balcony's railing. "I was offering you protection in the long term, if you understand what I mean. There are many dragon shifters out there who will happily ignore your standing as the Dragon Lord's daughter if it means getting rid of the disgrace to the shifter race that you represent in their eyes. I am almost as feared among us shifters as your father is revered."
He interrupted his speech to grant her a feral grin that sent shivers down her spine. "If you were mated to me though, they would think twice about attacking you."

Aelin's head reeled. It was true that some of the dragon shifters looked down on her mixed heritage, but she refused to even think about his offer. Mating? First of all, dragons mated for life. Their version of marriage was concluded not by the exchanging of rings, but by inserting a draconic venom into the partner's blood. The venom then changed the personal smell of the mated beasts, thereby informing other shifters of the change in social status. For the dragon shifters, the mating bond was sacred. A shifter betraying their partner or attacking a mated dragon was not only frowned upon but heavily punished. Depending on the gravity of the crime committed, the perpetrator could lose his wings or even his life. Secondly, she would never consider him a suitable marriage prospect. Sir Kenton was twice her age and his brutal tendencies put her off. Not even over her dead body would she allow him to bind herself to him for life.
Fully comprehending what he implied, she squared her shoulders and looked him straight in the eyes.
"How dare you?", she hissed, her golden eyes narrowing.
Sir Kenton shifted his weight. It was a subtle change, but she had seen it so often when she watched her father train with his men. The knight was readying himself, her putting up a fight seemed to excite him.
"I love how spiteful you are, little one. These silly girls didn't promise me too much when they told me where to find you."
He took another step towards her and when Aelin wanted to retreat, she found herself unable, the cold marble of the railing biting into her exposed back. Fear started to cloud her mind, but one thought made it through the haze.
"What do you mean? Who told you where to find me?"
The only ones she could imagine doing something so hateful were duchess Fiona and her posse. But even for them, pushing an unhinged beast on her was extreme. Was Fiona really feeling that threatened by the Jeridan Empire's emissary's affection for her? She didn't even reciprocate them, for Raia's sake!
"Does it matter?" Sir Kenton stood in front of her, his broad body completely blocking the light from the ballroom, casting her in his shadow.
He slowly stretched his arm towards her. Aelin's thoughts reeled, trying desperately to find a way to distract the warrior in front of her. She would never be able to beat him with bodily strength alone. Without an inner beast, she was helpless.
"Why are you doing this?" She hated how weak and frightened her voice sounded. Sir Kenton must have taken notice of it, be it through the pitch of her voice or the smell of fear emanating from her, as his grin broadened.
"Imagine how I would rise in your father's favour if I were to mate his precious daughter."
"You are deranged!", screeched Aelin. "My father would never approve of forced mating. That is sacrilegious!"
"Oh", Sir Kenton laughed darkly and the deep rumble sent shivers down her spine, "but he wouldn't be able to change a thing. Mating is sacred, so he would have to accept me as his son-in-law. And now stop struggling, I will take care of you properly, mate."
He grabbed her by her upper arm and drew her towards him. Aelin fought to the best of her ability, but it was impossible for her to move this mountain of muscle.
"Let me go! I do not consent! HEEE..."
His broad hand pressed down on her mouth, effectively shutting off her scream for help.
"You are but a half-blood, the human nobles don't care for you and the dragons won't dare to interfere. Accept your fate, it will be easier for you!"
And then he swiped her braid away from her neck, bending his head to get a better angle on her jugular. From the corner of her eyes, she saw the silvery sheen of the draconic venom on his teeth.

Panic overcame her. Her amber eyes desperately sought the darkness for a way out. There was no reaction from the ballroom. Either Sir Kenton had been quick enough in shutting down her scream so that no one had heard her, or they simply didn't care, protected from the ugly scene in their golden cage. How had she ended up in this situation? Why did nobody come to her help? And why was she so unbelievably weak? She was a dragon shifter just like him! She was a powerful being, even without wings and scales and claws! And even if there was no way out, she would never resign herself to a fate that she did not comply with. Steely resolve filled her and a disconcerting calm took over her body.
Aelin felt Sir Kenton's lips on her neck. A ball of blazing-hot fury grew in the pit of her stomach, expanding rapidly until her whole body was filled with an angry buzzing. The heat inside her grew until she couldn't stand it anymore. A silent scream of frustration broke free from her lips and silver flames exploded from her body.
Sir Kenton, who was just about to sink his teeth in her skin, was pushed away from the blast. The knight sank to his knees a meter away and suppressed a pained scream. His face and his hands already turned an angry red, his hair was singed on one side and the right sleeve of his shirt bore holes where her flames had clawed at the tissue. Astonished, Aelin stood there in front of him, engulfed in silver fire. The flames didn't burn her, no, on the contrary: the silver flames flickered softly on her frame, calming her.
She was surprised and relieved at the same time, her brain failed to catch up on the situation. It was undoubtedly dragonfire that she wielded without knowing what she was doing. But she shouldn't be able to call or control it. Dragon shifters were only able to breathe fire in their beast form. And why didn't it hurt her? Only their scales made dragon shifters impervious to fire, in their human form they were just as likely to turn into a human torch when coming in contact with fire as the next normal human. This explained why Sir Kenton was currently busy lamenting over the burns on his body despite being able to change into a fire-breathing dragon.
Seeing her tormentor on his knees, patting down his body to extinguish every last silver ember, made her realize that it wasn't important to understand why she was able to wield dragonfire in her human form. It most probably was linked to her unique descendance and her missing inner beast. Her priority at the moment was to fully utilize the opportunity her unexpected ability represented. Being a full-fledged dragon shifter, he had to bow to the king's rule of not harming fellow nobles. Apparently, that did not include her despite her noble title, or else he would not have been able to almost mark her by force. Still, with so many nobles close, he would not be able to shift into his beast form, which made him defenceless against her as long as she had control over her silver dragonfire. For the moment, she was the one who held all the cards and by Raia, did that feel good.

Slowly stepping towards the beaten dragon knight, Aelin drew on all the composure she had left to hide how shaken up she really was by this incident.
With a cold voice she pronounced: "Sir Kenton, I hereby inform you that I will inform your superior, Lord Glazius, of your offence. Mating is sacred amongst us dragon shifters, and you forcing a life-long bond that should be chosen out of love and commitment on a weaker and defenceless shifter is a serious crime."
She looked down on him from above, silver flames still swirling around her slender frame. Resting a hand on her hip, she narrowed her amber eyes that seemed to glow from within and lowered her voice. Her next words were sharp and clear, the threat they contained blatantly perceptible.
"If you ever, ever come close to me again, I will burn you. And then I will not stop with a few third-degree burns, no. Make a move on me again and I shall see your scaled hide go up in flames until there is nothing left but ashes drifting in the wind. Have I made myself clear?"
Sir Kenton bared his teeth angrily, but he had fought in the military long enough to know when to accept a defeat. As long as Aelin stayed close to the palace with all its nobles and could call upon the dragonfire at will, he was powerless. Without the ability to change into his beast form, he was at her mercy. So he swallowed his pride and inclined his head.
"Yes, very clear."
"What have I told you at the beginning of our little altercation? Show me the respect I deserve, SIR Kenton. Have I made myself clear?"
The dragon knight clenched a fist against the marble floor and hissed: "Very clear, Lady Aelin."
"Good!" After her curt reply, Aelin went to gather her skirts only to notice that her clothing had burned away in the dragonfire. Mortification wanted to take over, but this was neither the time nor the place for false pudency. If she wanted to keep her pride and her composure, she had to give off an air of natural self-confidence, or the hyenas inside the palace would tear her to pieces before she could count to three. After the huge battle she just won, that outcome was out of the question.
So she straightened her back for the umpteenth time that night, willed the weariness from her bones and the flames to dwindle out before striding straight towards the golden candlelight of the ballroom.

When Aelin opened the glass doors, she did so with gusto. If she had to be the talk of the coming weeks, she decided, she might as well make it epic. And if she had seen herself at that moment, a wild, nearly otherworldly being with golden, glowing eyes that seemed to be lit by an inner flame and dishevelled, silver hair that still sparked dragonfire embers, she would have understood the awe and the fear in the nobles' eyes. Instead, she concentrated on keeping her head high. Aelin let her gaze sweep over the nobles that had stilled to regard her compelling entry and addressed them a defiant stare until they looked away, taken aback.
With a hefty tug, she ripped down the red velvet curtain decorating the wall and hid her naked frame within. Then she traversed the ballroom, absentmindedly noting how the nobles made an effort to move out of her way. Closing the ostentations entrance doors of the room, she hurried down the corridor before sequestering herself in her chamber. With her back against the wooden door, she slid down to the floor, where she sat in a heap of red, velvet curtains and breathed out deeply, while the events of the evening tried to catch up to her. She knew that her sudden ability to wield dragonfire even in the presence of nobles, unaffected by the dark magic preventing the dragon shifters from harming the human elite, would probably bring about numerous problems. Still, she was not afraid.

"I am a dragon shifter. I may not have scales or claws or wings, but I am still an untameable creature. The dragons might look down on me and the humans might fear me, but my dragonfire burns bright. Let them come for me. I will show them that I am not anything less, just because I am not like them."