The gardens of the Imperial Palace sloped gently toward the sea, terraced in white stone and bordered by the low walls of sun-warmed marble. From the western edge of the plaza, one could glimpse the glittering harbor and the masts of Solcrest's fleet rising like a forest of spears. The empire's strength lay anchored out there, disciplined, gleaming, and obedient.
Here, though, there was only wind and steadily growing vines.
Emperor Carlos de Messena paused beneath the archway of climbing roses and dismissed the young servant who had followed him at a careful distance. The boy looked startled at first, as if unsure whether an emperor ought to be left alone with his thoughts. Carlos understood the instinct. He had built his reign on vigilance. But that wasn't what was needed right now.
After all, he had come here to do something far less certain than rule.
The newly christened Princess Anna Robles de Messena lay on her back in a patch of morning sunlight, boots discarded, hair undone, and skirts slightly stained with grass. One arm was folded behind her head. While the other rested on the curved spine of a small dragon.
The creature was no larger than a hound, its scales a soft pink that shimmered toward gold at the edges. Thin wings, folded neatly against its body, rose and fell with slow contentment. And smoke curled lazily from its nostrils in faint, harmless wisps.
The beast had been a gift from Balmorra. One that was given to Solcrest during a diplomatic meeting some years back. From what the Emperor was told, it was the product of the infamous Prince Martin's own dragon, Morning Star. The first of what was sure to be many under their neighbor's command in the coming years. And when he discovered that his daughter had a talent for taming magical beasts, Carlos wasted no time in sending it to her as a gift. Mostly as a way to show the girl that she was still in his thoughts.
Anna's eyes were closed, but she did not appear asleep.
For a moment, Carlos simply watched.
The girl had her mother's stillness. He could still remember that summer as if it were only yesterday. The long grassy fields, the scent of citrus groves, the way Anna's mother spoke little but observed everything. He had mistaken quiet for simplicity back then. It had taken him all of two weeks to realize it was not.
The dragon's eyes opened first.
Golden slits fixed on the man. And a low, warning rumble vibrated through the creature's chest as he made his approach.
Anna's hand moved, not hurried, not alarmed, merely certain. Her fingers traced a pattern along the dragon's scales, and the rumble faded.
"It's okay, Sol." The Princess murmured.
Only then did she finally open her eyes.
They were not surprised. She had known he was there.
"Your Majesty." She said as she pushed herself up to sit. She did not scramble to her feet, and she certainly did not bow.
The correction came a second later, softer. "I would prefer it if you called me Father."
The word hung between them like something delicate and easily broken.
He approached slowly, as one might approach a nervous colt. The dragon's gaze followed him, unblinking and unsure.
"I hope I'm not disturbing you."
"You're not." Anna brushed a bit of grass from her sleeve. "We were just resting."
We.
Carlos cut a quick glance at the dragon. "He seems to be growing well."
"Yes." A faint warmth entered the girl's voice. "He sheds twice as often now. I heard the gardeners complaining about it earlier."
"I can speak to them, if you want me to."
"It's okay. They don't mean anything bad by it." She hesitated. "I think they like him more than all the peacocks."
That, at least, drew a small smile from him. "Most sensible."
A breeze stirred the trees. Somewhere nearby, a fountain murmured over stone.
He remembered the day he had sent the dragon egg, accompanied by a letter written in his own hand. Along with a small chest of gold for good measure. He had told himself it was thoughtful. Personal. A sign that he understood her gift.
A beast tamer, the first in the Imperial Family in three generations. Even at eleven, Anna had been known in her village for coaxing wild things into gentleness. Her talent was the kind that seemed to suit her perfectly.
He had not visited her, though. He wanted to, but the risk was simply too great to bear at that time.
"I'm glad he survived the hatching." Carlos then said in a calm tone. "The tamers that we have here in the palace warned me that it was going to be difficult since he's so far away from his natural habitat."
Anna simply nodded in response as her fingers glided along the creature's spine. "It was. He was frightened at first. It took a while before he learned to be satisfied with open fields without any caves nearby."
"And you?"
She considered the question as if it required genuine thought. "Also frightened. But also excited. I am the only one in the empire with a dragon, after all."
The man felt the shape of something forming in his throat. An apology, perhaps, but it dissolved before it could even reach his mouth.
"I…should have been there." He said instead.
Anna's gaze shifted to him fully for the first time. It was not accusing, but neither was it forgiving.
"It was a gift." She replied carefully. "And I was grateful to have that much."
Grateful.
The word struck him harder than anger would have.
"Have you settled into the palace well?" He asked, hearing the inadequacy in the question even as he spoke it. "You've been here for a little over a month now."
Before responding, Anna looked around the garden. To the sculpted hedges, the imported palms, the riot of cultivated color designed to mimic wilderness without ever risking it.
"It's beautiful…" She said. "And very… arranged."
He exhaled softly. "Yes. It is."
"I miss the noise, though." She admitted after a moment. "Chickens. Goats. The wind through the wheat. Here, even the birds sound rehearsed."
Carlos followed her gaze to the ornamental doves perched along a balustrade. He had never thought to listen closely enough to notice.
"My people tell me that you're having a bit of trouble with your lessons." The man said gently as he tried to shift topics. "I understand that etiquette and proper protocols are a hard thing to master. But with-"
"I know."
She did not sound resentful. Only resigned.
"I'll learn it all eventually." She continued. "I always do. But to be honest, it's pretty dull."
The dragon shifted, curling closer to her side. The girl rested her cheek briefly against its warm scales.
"I can request more time in the gardens, if you think that will help." Carlos offered. "Or arrange for you to visit the royal menagerie. The Royal Stablemaster has been dying to meet you and take a look at your companion."
That, at last, sparked something brighter in the girl's expression. "Really?"
"Of course. Your talent is not ornamental, Anna. It is rare. And many in the palace would love to see you flourish with it."
Color touched her cheeks, whether from sun or pleasure, he could not tell. "Thank you."
He seized upon that small success. This was the first sign of real progress that he had made with her ever since she arrived at the palace. "In time, the rest of the court will see it as I do."
Will they? The doubt whispered beneath the assurance.
A farmworker's daughter. One that would become a dragonrider once her beast was large enough to support her weight. Nobles were already murmuring amongst themselves about what that could possibly mean for the future of their nation.
He had silenced louder dissent before. He could silence this, too.
Yet he could not command comfort into his daughter's bones.
"Tell me, are you… unhappy here?" Carlos asked quietly, just loud enough for only the two of them to hear.
Anna did not answer right away. Instead, she studied a line of ants traversing the stone near her knee. He had long since heard that the girl wasn't exactly the best conversationalist in the world. Her personality just wasn't suited for it. To be honest, he wasn't that much different when he was younger.
"I don't think I'll ever get used to how stuffy this place is." The girl said at last. "Or conversations where everyone already knows what they're supposed to say."
Her eyes lifted to his.
"I don't always know what I'm supposed to say. Talking to the servants you have around here is easy enough. But interacting with the nobles and officials is a bit more difficult than I expected. I don't want to say anything that will make you look bad."
The honesty in it startled the Emperor. But such candidness wasn't unwelcome, either.
"You needn't perform for anyone here. They all know that you're still adjusting to your new accommodations. And none of them would dare speak badly about you if they had any sense." He replied.
A faint, almost imperceptible smile touched her mouth. "I'll take your word for it."
Sol's tail flicked, brushing his boot. Carlos resisted the instinct to step back. Even at its size, the young dragon was dangerous to anyone who caught its attention.
"When I sent you the egg…" He began, then paused. The truth felt unwieldy in his throat. "I wanted you to have something of mine. Something that said I was thinking of you."
"I know." Anna replied softly. "I figured as much from your letter."
"But it was not the same as coming."
"No, it wasn't." She agreed without even the slightest bit of hesitation.
There was no cruelty in her words. Only fact. A fact that did nothing to make Carlos feel any less disappointed in himself.
Silence settled between them once again. Not entirely uncomfortable, but not entirely easy either.
Carlos then did something unexpected, which was to lower himself onto the grass opposite his daughter. And the man took a slight bit of pleasure at ignoring the distant horror he imagined was slowly forming on his chamberlain's face. The earth was cool through the fabric of his trousers. And he had to wonder when the last time he had done something like this was.
Sol watched him carefully, then, after a long moment, relaxed.
Anna observed this with interest. "He doesn't trust easily."
"Should he?"
She tilted her head. "No."
Carlos let out a breath that might have been a laugh.
"Then I am honored."
The dragon extended its neck, sniffing the air near him. A thin ribbon of smoke drifted upward.
"He's good at sensing intent." Anna said with a slight smile forming on her lips. "Most beasts are."
"And what does he sense?"
The girl regarded him for a long, assessing moment. As if she were trying to find the right words to say. Whatever had passed through her mind would forever be a mystery to the man. But at the very least, he could see that there was no malice behind her expression.
"That you are trying."
The words were simple. But they undid him more thoroughly than accusation ever could.
"Is that enough?" He asked.
"For today, it is." she said.
Today.
Not forever. Not absolution. Not love restored in a single afternoon.
For today.
A gardener passed at the far end of the terrace, pretending not to stare. Beyond the walls, the sea wind carried the distant clang of ship bells. And the smell of the ocean was beginning to come in with the midday tide.
Carlos rose reluctantly, aware of the schedule waiting to reclaim him.
"I will speak with the Royal Stablemaster before the day is over." The man said as he straightened out his silken finery. "And with your tutors. We will find a balance with your schedule. One that I'm sure you would enjoy."
Anna inclined her head. "Thank you… Father."
This time, the word sounded less fragile. Not strong, but steadier.
As he turned to leave, Sol gave a soft chirr and settled his head in Anna's lap. She bent over the dragon, sunlight catching in her dark hair, utterly at ease in a way the throne room would never grant her.
Carlos paused beneath the archway once more.
He had given her a dragon and called it care.
Now he understood the difference.
Kindness could be sent in parcels. But presence required time. And time, unlike titles, could not be decreed into loyalty.
In the garden, his daughter sat with a creature that trusted her because she had been there at its most frightened. And as Carlos stepped back into the corridor of white stone and shadow, he carried with him the uncomfortable, necessary knowledge that fatherhood, like taming a dragon, could not be commanded from afar. It had to be earned, slowly, in the quiet hours when no one was watching.
For today, he was trying.
But for today, that would have to be enough.