"I’ve decided that Draven will be my future husband."
Draven dropped the tool, Kevar stopped working, Kali blinked, Yruza remained motionless, and the demon queen sighed.
Draven was the first to react.
"What?"
Zenash looked at him.
"I want you to be my husband."
Draven waited for the adults to laugh, since the idea was absurd, but none of that happened.
He looked at Kali, and she wasn’t laughing.
He looked at Kevar, and neither was he.
He looked at the demon queen, but she seemed to be seriously considering it.
’Why isn’t anyone laughing!?’
Draven raised both hands.
"We’re seven years old."
Kali smiled.
"We already know that."
"Then..."
The demon queen spoke.
"I don’t see any problem."
Draven quickly turned.
"What?"
The woman crossed her arms.
"Zenash will have to get engaged someday."
"But she’s seven!"
"An engagement doesn’t mean they’re getting married tomorrow."
Draven looked at Kali for help, but that was a mistake, because Kali was smiling happily.
"I think it’s a great idea."
Draven’s eyes widened.
"Mom?"
"Zenash is lovely."
"That’s not the problem!"
Kali looked at Kevar.
"Right?"
Kevar opened his mouth.
"Well, I think maybe we should..."
Kali looked at him, and Kevar fell silent, making Draven stare at his father.
’Don’t give up, Dad. Fight for your son.’
Kevar tried again.
"I’m just saying they could wait a little before deciding..."
"Kevar."
Kali said in a serious tone, and he slowly took a breath.
"...but I don’t see any problem either."
Draven froze.
’Dad... you were defeated way too quickly.’
Zenash walked over to Draven.
"Then it’s decided."
Draven took half a step back.
"No, it’s not decided yet!"
Zenash frowned.
"Why?"
"Because no one asked me."
"I asked you."
Draven fell silent.
"When?"
Zenash answered immediately.
"Last time."
Draven began to remember.
’Do you like demons? Could you be with a demon girl?’
And his answer.
’Of course. I don’t have any problem with that.’
Draven’s eyes widened.
"That doesn’t count!"
Zenash tilted her head.
"And why not?"
"Because you didn’t say anything about marriage!"
"But you said you could be with a demon girl."
"I was speaking in general!"
Zenash crossed her arms.
"Then now you can be with me."
"That’s not how it works."
"Yes, it is."
"I said no."
"Yes."
"No!"
Zenash took another step, and Draven backed away.
"Draven."
Her tone changed and became more serious.
"It’ll be better for you."
Draven stopped moving.
"What?"
Zenash nodded.
"If you’re with me, no one in Fernus will be able to bother you."
"That sounds more like a threat."
"It’s protection."
"And what if I say no?"
Zenash stared at him and then smiled slightly.
"You’re going to say yes."
Draven felt a strange sense of familiarity.
The phrase, the confidence, and the absolute lack of interest in his opinion.
Draven slowly turned his head, looked at Kevar, who avoided his gaze, and then Draven looked back at Zenash.
’No way.’
He remembered what he knew about his parents.
Kali had practically decided that Kevar would be her husband, and he had eventually accepted.
Draven slowly pointed at his father.
"Dad."
Kevar looked at him.
"Yes?"
"Did this happen to you too?"
There was a brief silence.
Kali raised an eyebrow, and Kevar looked away.
"I’d rather not answer."
Draven closed his eyes.
’I knew it.’
The demon queen let out a small laugh, and Kali walked over to her friend.
"Then it looks like it finally happened."
Draven opened his eyes.
"Finally?"
The two women looked at each other, and the demon queen smiled.
"I suppose our promise finally came true."
Draven froze.
Kali nodded.
"I always said that if our children got along, it would be perfect."
Draven felt something click into place.
"Promise?"
Kali looked at him.
"Something silly we said years ago."
"What silly thing?"
The demon queen answered.
"That if our children liked each other, we would consider joining our families."
Draven looked at Zenash, who was smiling, then at Kali, who was also smiling, then at the demon queen, who was doing the same.
Finally, he looked at Kevar, who seemed to want to be anywhere else.
’It was arranged.’
Not completely, but the two mothers had been waiting for something like this for years, and Zenash had simply sped up the process.
"This is a conspiracy."
Draven said, and Kali laughed.
"Don’t exaggerate."
"I just got engaged!"
"Informally."
"That doesn’t make it any better."
Zenash took Draven’s hand, and he looked down.
"What are you doing?"
"We’re engaged."
"Not officially."
"But we will be."
"That can still be discussed."
"I said we will be."
Draven looked up, seeing that Zenash looked extremely satisfied, and then something appeared in front of him.
[Your bond with Zenash Varzometh has strengthened considerably.]
Draven fell silent, looked at the message, and then at Zenash.
’Sasri.’
The window disappeared, and Draven gritted his teeth.
’You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?’
He was completely sure of it.
That night, Draven took a long time to fall asleep, not because he was worried about Zenash, or at least that was what he wanted to believe.
He was trying to understand how he had gone from talking to a little girl about Nhal steeds to being informally engaged to the future queen of Fernus.
All in just a few weeks.
"This got out of control really fast."
He muttered and finally managed to fall asleep, but a few hours later he woke up because he had a much more urgent need.
’Bathroom.’
He got up half-asleep, left his room, and the house was completely dark.
Draven walked down the hallway, passed his parents’ room, and then heard a noise.
He stopped, and another noise followed, so Draven turned toward the door, which was almost closed except for a small opening.
’What are they doing awake at this hour?’
He heard Kevar’s voice.
"Wait."
Then Kali’s.
"Stop complaining."
Draven frowned.
’Are they fighting?’
He moved a little closer, which he shouldn’t have done, but he did.
He looked through the opening for only a second, but it was enough, because Draven was shocked and disturbed by what he saw.
He saw part of his mother’s demon tail, and he saw that the tail was involved in something Draven did not need to know about.
He immediately stepped away, and his face went completely stiff.
’Why does my mom have that tail, and why...?’
He walked to the bathroom, did what he had to do, returned down the hallway, and this time passed in front of his parents’ room while staring directly at the opposite wall.
He didn’t hear anything, and he didn’t want to hear anything.
He entered his room, closed the door, got under the blankets, and stared silently at the ceiling.
Several seconds passed, and Draven remembered the scene he had seen moments earlier.
’Do demon women use their tails too?’
He squeezed his eyes shut.
"I want to forget that."
It didn’t work, because he remembered Zenash and their engagement, so Draven opened his eyes.
He remained completely still and then said only one thing.
"I don’t want to make it to the wedding night."
He covered his head with the blanket.
For the first time since he had arrived in Valkaen, the god of destruction no longer seemed like the most terrifying problem in his future.