OH, ANCESTORS I'M IN TROUBLE

Chapter 8

Oh, Ancestors, I'm In Trouble

Part 2

My ethereal soul aching at the idea that someone had taken the time to learn my grand ancestor's language. I held up my hands, firing off questions. "How long have you known about star sign language… When?…Is everyone else okay?" Xanth held a hand over mine, pausing my questions. "Whoa, Mute. I know the language, but I'm still studying it. Would you mind going slow?" He smirked at me when I blushed at my foolishness. Of course, he was still learning. It had taken me eons to grasp the concept to communicate with my grand ancestor. When he took his warm hands off mine, after a pause, I began signing again this time more clearly.

"Apologies, it has been so long since I have had someone understand me. Well, other than Masha." He nodded while speaking.

"I understand your enthusiasm, but that won't be a reoccurrence for long." I blinked at him, confused.

"What do you mean?" He smiled at me and it sent shivers down my spine.

For the love of temples, I needed to get this infatuation underhand. "Come, lay back down." He led the way back to my medical cot. I watched as he peeled back the white sheets making room so I could hop back in. Once he stepped back, I signed a thank you at him before sliding in the once warm sheets, now cold against my skin. Xanth pulled a wooden chair from one of the medical desks before sitting in it. He spoke, his deep voice echoing across the silent room.

"Your teammates have been spending time learning your sign language to communicate with you better. Even Drakson has set about learning it as well." I leaned back against the cot, blinking away the tears threatening to fall.

"I don't know what to say." Xanth only smiled at me. "You'd be surprised what your teammates are willing to do for each other." The smile slipped from his face as his eyes grew dark. "The king should have never gotten the chance to hurt you like that. It was my fault for not stepping in earlier." I swallowed past the lump forming in my throat. We were going into dangerous territory. If we kept going on the topic of the crown; he would start asking me about how he knew me and dreadfully how I was able to stop his mind-screamer. Xanth leaned forward, putting his elbows on his thighs and clasping his large hands in front of him. "Mute, how…" Before he could ask that dreadful question, my dragons tapped on the glass of a nearby window. Xanth turned around and squinted at them before glancing back at me. I smiled at him signing. "I need to let them in." He held a strong hand in front of me, pausing me when I tried to move. He stood up, a worried gaze replacing his confused one. "Will they hurt you again?" I waved my hands in front of me. "They were never hurting me. They were helping me absorb your fa- King's energy. They only overheated because I poured too much into them." I explained, changing some of my words when a dark look descended on Xanth's face. Saying nothing more, Xanth turned away and headed toward the window. My dragons happily floated in, zipping and curling around each other. When they finally noticed me, they immediately zoomed over to me. I grinned as they caressed my skin, sending warm healing energy into me. Xanth watched with a tilted head as they curled into my lap, resting. I stroked their metallic-like skin, thanking them for the needed distraction. They responded to my touch by glowing a golden brown that matched my skin when I was in my ethereal form.

"Extraordinary, I have never seen weaponry like this before." Xanth gradually sat down in his chair, his eyes still on my dragons. The glimmer in his eyes made my stomach turn. I had seen that look before, it was the same one Elvira had given me when she found out I could morph them into weapons. If it were not for the fact that no one could even get near them. She would have taken them along with everything else I had. I placed my hands over my dragons, protecting them from his view. They rose through my fingers, hissing to protect me from my distressed mood. Xanth glanced up at me a solemn look falling over his face as he noticed my fear.

"Mute, you misunderstand. I only hold a curiosity for them, nothing else. I would never do anything to hurt you. Never. You are a part of this group, and despite what the king says or does. He has no jurisdiction over me or my team." I swallowed hard as a cold, furious look descended over his face.

"And I will not let him or anyone else harm my team ever again whilst you and yours are under my protection. Last night should have never happened, but he caught me by surprise. What you did, standing up to the king and protecting Zaylee, only solidified your place with us. With me."

I rose my eyebrows at him. It took years for me to learn to trust others again. Hell, it took me forever to let Masha in as far as I did. I had spent my whole life being forced to trust no one. However, the fierce protection gaze on Xanth's face made it easier for me to trust him on this. I nodded at him signing.

"I will hold you to that."

"Be sure that you do. And if I do not live up to my vow you can use those…those… what exactly do you call these things." I chuckled at him as he gestured toward Lux and Noctis. The two dragon serpents were now resting within my lap and playfully nipping at my fingers. I removed my hands warily. Not wanting to show this part of myself but wanting to finally trust another. "These are my dragons. Lux." I pointed at the one with the silver chrome skin sitting on my lap before pointing at the other one. "And Noctis." I moved my finger over to the black chrome skinned one that tried to nip at my erect finger. Xanth blinked at me. His amber eyes were full of nothing but care and curiosity as he spoke.

"What are dragons?" he asked as he re-signed the last word.

"Oh,…" I stopped signing for a minute, trying to think of a word that would mean dragon in the Bio-language. My eyebrows jumped on my face when finally, a similar phrase popped in my head.

"They are like bio-humans spliced with serpentine DNA. Except, superstitions hold that these are their ancestor's original forms." I placed my hands around them again in case one of them sought retribution. Xanth leaned forward again, trying to get a closer look. Noctis was the first to stop biting my fingers and turn toward him. I moved to stop him when he crawled toward him. He slipped past my fingers, his little legs moving faster than I could react. My heart slammed against my rib cage and into my throat when I saw Noctis fly over to where Xanth rested. The last time someone had tried to touch them, they tore fingers off. Noctis floated around him, and thank the ancestors, Xanth didn't move a muscle. He sat still, waiting to see what he would do next. I moved to intercept him again but paused when Xanth gave me a look to say he was okay. Noctis landed on Xanth's shoulder, and all he did was travel around him, checking him out. Lux did not share the same fascination her brother did. She only spread out her body, stretching as she took over Noctis's vacated space. Still not moving a muscle, Xanth's eyes followed Noctis until he landed on his shoulder, curling up beside his neck. Xanth cautiously reached up a hand. When Noctis didn't try to bite off his fingers or hiss, he began stroking him. Xanth's amber eyes met mine, a warm smile cresting over the edges of his plump lips.

"I think he likes me."

I rolled my eyes, of course, Noctis would like him, figures. Noctis was the more-calm dragon compared to Lux. She was the one with the fiery temper and also the one who bit off the fingers. I leaned back against the pads of the cots relaxing when I realized Noctis wasn't going to hurt Xanth. Still staring at Xanth, I watched as he continued to caress my dragon with caring strokes. Xanth stared at something on the far wall, his hand absentmindedly still moving. I leaned back to close my eyes. My body still, begging for more rest. "Mute, how did you stop the king from mind screaming Zaylee?" My eyes snapped open at the horrid question. Grozit.

Incoming message from Nightshade/Plottwist.....

Hello, everyone, I would like to start this message by asking about how everyone is doing these days? I hope everyone is remembering to drink their water. Sending love and positive vibes everyone's way. So, school is starting for me and I will be focusing more on that since this is just for fun. I know I promised not to leave you guys in a cliff hanger, but my degree is important to me. With this being said, weekly updates on Sunday are being changed to be updated when I can. Thank you for your patience. I hope everyone is enjoying the story so far. There is a lot more adventure for Mute and Sui generis. Maybe even a certain kiss scene *wink* I hope everyone has a great day! See you when I can...

Message terminated by Nightshade/ Plottiwst.....