A new life

That was it. We kissed. We were married. I felt nothing, except for maybe distress. My fate was now sealed. This was my new life. This man was my new life.

There was a lot of stuff happening around me: the priest was very happy and smiled. My father shed a tear, but didn't cry as loud as the obnoxious servant my husband brought along. I believe his name was Corvas. Or was it Cervos? I couldn't say I cared either way. He was loud and annoying.

I wished my husband would be a bit more loud though. I honestly started to wonder whether my husband was socially incompetent. He didn't talk much and everything he asked had nothing to do with me. Perhaps he was nervous or perhaps he didn't want this, just like me. In that case, maybe we could have a divorce soon. Look at me, I already consider divorces right after the wedding ceremony. I have always been the romantic type.

I made eye contact with my husband again. We said nothing. We just stared in each others eyes.  Then, he finally broke the silence.
'... You have dragons, don't you?'
'One.'  I answered. 'His name is Zereen.'
'Can you perhaps show him to me? I have to approve of him, after all...' I was a bit angered.  He already took me from my home and now he considered separating me from my dragon as well. I already threatened him in my mind, in case he wouldn't approve of Zereen.
'Why wouldn't you approve of him?' I asked bluntly.  'I raised him. He behaves well.'
'Seralys...' My father gave me a stern look.
'You do realize dragons are illegal everywhere right? Taking one with you is quite the risk.' My husband looked me in the eye while he stated this. I knew he was right. That angered me even more. I tried to hide my anger, but I'm sure he noticed it.
'But don't worry. As long as he's not the size of a castle yet, I'll take it.' He tried to reassure me. Even though he tried to be nice, I couldn't bother to say thank you. I couldn't bother to say anything nice to this person.
My father then  thanked him instead. 'Thank you Stubrandt, Zereen means a lot to her. I will show you the dragon now, if you please.'

My father escorted Stubrandt, Corvas and me to Zereen. Zereen noticed us immediately and was glad to see me. He flew towards me and rubbed his head against me. Then, he noticed Stubrandt. He inspected Stubrandt and Stubrandt inspected him as well.
'He's actually quite small.' Stubrandt stated. Zereen growled at Stubrandt. Stubrandt didn't bat an eyelid.
'He's very young, about one year old. But his fire burns intensely! He's the strongest dragon in all of Stiyria!' My father laughed. Stubrandt didn't laugh, and nor did I. Corvas seemed a bit uneasy as well.
'I can smuggle this.' Stubrandt then smiled at me.
'But Sir... You know the risks, don't you? To smuggle this thing all the way to Sograd is-' Corvas was interrupted.
'Perfectly possible.' Stubrandt stated. He then ignored Corvas and tried to approach Zereen. But my father warned him.
'Hey, hey, not so fast. Do you want to die? You shouldn't approach a dragon. The dragon should approach you.'  In response, Stubrandt backed down.
'I guess I'll leave the dragon to my wife.' Stubrandt shrugged.
'A wise decision.' My father laughed again. 'A dragon only approves of certain spirits. If they don't approve of your spirit, you're going to get roasted if you approach them. You should be more careful, noble lord.'
'Ah... Well, you don't have to worry about my spirit or soul!' For the first time ever, I saw Stubrandt laughing. But no one else laughed. Was that supposed to be a joke? If so, I didn't get it. I wanted to point out that his joke was terrible, but I realized my father was still standing there. So instead, I behaved and said nothing. I just silently judged him for being unfunny.

'Well, I've decided. I'll take both the dragon and your daughter. Both will do great in Sograd. I'm sure of it.' He smiled at me again. I tried my best to avoid eye contact.
'Sir, please reconsider... Dragons are dangerous.' Corvas whispered. But Stubrandt ignored him and so did my father. If Corvas wasn't indirectly insulting Zereen, I'd probably feel bad for him. Though, to be honest he gave me a bad vibe. I bet he is one of those people who look down on us ''desertpeople''. My father continued the conversation.
'That's terrific to hear! Then, I suppose you will be leaving soon? Are your horses ready? And do you have all your stuff as well, Seralys?' My father asked. Stubrandt and I both nodded.

I had packed some books  yesterday in case this nightmare would actually happen. I love reading books. Honestly, my childhood consists of reading, reading and even more reading. It lets you escape reality and time. I could really use that at this very moment.

'Everything is in place, of course, Sir. We wouldn't want to make anyone wait! We can leave right away!' Corvas put on a smile and seemed excited again. 'What a day, what a day! Isn't it all so exciting? I'm glad I'm alive to experience this all... I'm so glad.' My father rolled his eyes and I couldn't help but smile.  'Milady, my dear lord Stubrandt has a present for you as well! Could you be so kind to follow me?' Corvas asked. I nodded and wondered what kind of present he was talking about. My father, Stubrandt and I all followed Corvas outside. My father brought Zereen with him as well, in a rather big cage.

'A horse?' I looked at the white horse that stood in front of me. It was a beautiful horse. Even I couldn't deny that. There were two other beautiful black horses in the distance. It was a good thing that Zereen was locked up. He loves horse meat the most. I could hear him making noises from his cage.
'Do you like it?' Stubrandt asked.
'Yes, she's beautiful...' I still couldn't get myself to thank him for all his nice gestures.
'My, my, you shouldn't have done that, Stu! You're too kind...' My father was a bit amazed at his generosity. I wasn't that surprised at all to be honest. It is advantageous to have a good relationship with the Assynio family. That's probably the only reason he's being ''generous''.
'A beautiful woman should ride a beautiful horse. It's only fitting. We have tons of horses in Garsten... It's no big deal, honestly.' Stubrandt lifted me and put me on the white horse. I was honestly a bit surprised that he was able to lift me at all. He didn't seem that strong to me, but that's probably because Asaharian men typically tend to be very large and strong. Compared to those men, he seemed a bit slender. Stubrandt silently walked towards the two black horses in the distance.

'Seralys... Make him happy.' My father whispered.
'Can you do that for me?' I nodded dutiful. Stubrandt returned with the two black horses. One was his own horse, the other horse belonged to Corvas. My father placed Zereens cage on the back of my white horse. He used a rope to make sure it would stay in place. I could sense that Zereen felt uneasy and tried to comfort him by talking to him. Meanwhile, my father finished everything with Corvas. After a few minuts, everything was finished and we were ready to go.

'Thank you, Sir Rhodo. I will take care of your daughter and dragon. You have my oath. May our new lives together be great and glorious!' My father nodded and gave Stubrandt a gesture which meant that he was dismissed. We left the palace gardens and made our way through Asahar to meet up with the rest of Stubrandt his crew.