I moaned quietly when I started to stir from my sleep. Curling myself into a ball, snuggling in as a gentle with firm force pulled me in further. An embrace I loved so much. I felt so relaxed and happy as I lay there for a good few minutes or so before a soft muffled humming opened my eyes.

My vision was filled with that of the black and brown scales. With my head laying on the thickest part of Adrian's tail, it curved around me like a nest. I couldn't see the rest but lifting my head up, the end of the tail was what held me like an arm over the thin blanket.

Slowly, memories started coming back to me. He hypnotized me! He forced me to reveal what was bothering me and the sleep. But was that it? The questions that I keep asking myself, continue to never be answered. Upon sitting up, the humming stopped, and Adrian appeared from the entrance of the cave.

"Good morning." He smiled, "How are you feeling?" The question stunned me for a moment.

"I feel...fine." I unsurely answered, "Better even?"

"You went to sleep for long periods of time." He said, "Your lack of sleep and unsettledness was what caused it." He was right about it. I guess it would make sense I would sleep for long periods...

"Wait...what do you mean long periods?" I asked, "How long was I out?"

"A few days." He answered, "You weren't asleep for all that time. You did move about."

"Wait, wait, wait! Are you saying that I was hypnotized for those few days?!" I yelled, bewildered that he kept me under his control for that long. Though a part of me expected it to be much longer. I don't even remember anything.

Adrian raised his hands in defence.

"Relax, Sophia. I didn't do anything to you other than helping you relax. You were quite happy about it but that was a side effect of the hypnosis." He went to scratching the back of his head when it said it. My usual response would be to yell and argue at that statement. But for some reason, I didn't.

I felt calm. How could I feel calm about that? I literally had nothing to say. With that, I sighed heavily which made Adrian looked at me concerned.

"You made me tell you..." I began to say, "...about what was bothering me."

"Yes. I did." He answered as his tail moved up to my face and caress my cheek. I leaned into it. Accepting the comfort that it was giving.

"I understand why you would be." He continued, "What Nathen said wasn't entirely true. I choose you yes. I want to...mate you, yes. But right now, no. And I will never kill you."

I continued to sit there in silence as I listened to him.

"I love you, Sophia. I do. And it was because of Nathen, that I didn't follow the tradition." He explained, "Beforehand, I would've but when Nathen didn't follow the tradition with his...I was curious to know why and that was when I got to know you." I blinked a few times at that last part.

"You became more important to me. Your life, your soul became the thing that I wanted to protect. To love and cherish."

I looked away as I thought deeply about what he said. It was because of Nathen that he didn't put me fully under hypnosis. All that time, he never wanted to control me but to love me as who I am. Adrian moved close to me until he was in front.

His tail moved away from me, but a hand replaced it. Making me look up at his desperate face. I still didn't speak. Instead, I placed my hand on his and sunk into it as I closed my eyes. Feeling a soft kiss on my forehead was all that he did. Letting myself enjoy that moment. It did feel like nothing happened between us. Like it was back before but there were a lot of things I still needed to know.

"I still have a few questions." I broke the silence between us. Adrian removed his hand and pulled back into a seated position. "Why did you kill Nathen's mate?"

"Alice..." he muttered as his face darken. "...was not at all what she seemed. When I first saw her, I was...curious, no, suspicious about her behaviour. Most mates would fear us and reject us, at least that was what our father told us."

"Nathen said, she was interested in him." I added.

"That was the problem." He continued, "She was part of a group that was aimed to hunting us." My eyes widen in shock. I remember Adrian mentioning his kind's caution of exposing themselves. So, in the end, someone did find out.

"How did you know?"

"Investigation." He answered, "After I first met her, I decided to look into her background while my brother was blinded though in his rights to defend his mate from being taken. And that's when I learn about her association to that group."

"That's why you killed her." I muttered and my brain tried to process it through. It was a lot and confusing. "And you left because of that group?"

"Not really." he shook his head, "I wasn't lying when I said I moved because of the changing season but also I wanted to explore. And fate led me to you."

I paused for a moment as I thought of my next question. He was answering my questions quite comfortably.

"Why did you bring me here then?" I asked, "Were you planning all that time to bring me here?" He too paused for a moment before answering.

"Yes and no." he said, "I was originally going to bring you to visit my home. But things changed when my brother came into view. I brought you here to be safe. In my own territory."

"But your brother isn't a threat." I retorted back, "He had no intention of harming me. He was trying to push me away." I bit my lip for a moment. Thinking that Adrian would twitch upon my defence for his brother, but nothing happened.

"True, but my brother is blinded by revenge and I believe that he has gone into the deep end." What did that mean? I was about to ask when I started feeling hungry. I took a deep breath.

"Can I get something to eat?" I asked smiling softly. Adrian almost chuckled, standing up before offering his hand, helping to get onto my own feet. My mind felt more at ease at least with more questions being answered now.