#da v

All those lessons about manners and knocking on peoples doors before entering, that his mother tried her damnedest on teaching him- came flooding back. He could practically hear her screaming beyond the grave as what ever question he had for Ashur left his brain.

In front if him stood Ashur, hat off and mask crumpled on his desk. But it wasn't really Ashur….was it? He looked him up and down . The same shoulder build, same body proportions. The eyes were the familiar blue Ashur sported, too. He nodded to himself that yeah no this was Ashur's body.

He just had the face of the Imperial Divine.

Ashur; a current head of the Shadow Dragons, the one that agreed to take him on as a young Dragon almost a decade ago- was the gods damned Imperial Divine.

And he just walked in on him, nothing hiding his identity from his mismatched eyes. He now knew how Tarquin felt when walking on him as he was doing scar management for the two scars under his pecs, at a time where Lorant wasn't out to the Dragons: Like an ass.

"Kaffas, Ashur- sorry, I'll come back- i should have knocked," he started, finally realizing he was just staring at the man - saying fucking nothing.

Ashur's deep chuckle broke through Lorant's embarrassment, "Its fine, Red." The nick name the older man used for him since the day they met, rolled off his tongue. "I knew it'd happen one day."

Lorant froze and felt even more embarrassing dread hit him. "Gods don't say that, I feel bad enough." He weakly laughed, rubbing his neck.

Ashur snorted softly before taking a seat at his desk, "Lorant, I knew the day I saw you hanging off your fathers arm, blabbing on about whatever your ten year old head could think of, that one day you'd be trouble."

Lorant knows the day Ashur was talking about. Twenty-ish years ago his parents had some meetings with the Vesperian family, consulting with the two military personnel for the Imperial Divine of the times grand ball they had coming up. He doesn't remember what they were talking about specifically but he knew he was so bored waiting around.

Normally his mom and dad wouldn't bring him around, preferring to keep him safely home and away from judgmental eyes that would only stare at his pointed ears, but something had happened that morning to where their only choice was to bring him. He didn't remember, nor care, what but he did remember the cramped hood that hid his ears and barely contained his unruly red hair.

He also remembered being so bored, gripping onto his fathers hand as he stood by, rambling about nonsense to himself but loud enough for his father to shush him a couple times. The adults were talking about guard posts or whatever but he and the other non adult in the room caught each others eyes and stared at each other, not listening to a word the adults said. Their eyes never left each other, sussing the other out, which shushed Lorant for a time. He remembered taking in the older kid, thinking that he didn't look like the son of the divine. He thought the son of the divine would be more regal, more other worldly.

The kid looked to be in his teens maybe early twenties and scrawny.

The kid had some striking blue eyes too…

Wait…

"That was you?!"

Ashur's laugh came back once more and he shifted, plopping his feet up on his desk, crumpling some papers. "Yes it was."

Lorant laughed in shock before shaking his head, "I can't believe I've embarrassed myself in front of you more than once now."

"Oh its been WAY more than once, Red." He laughed, "Now was there something you needed or are you just here to barge in on me unannounced?" Ashur teased, arms crossing his chest.

Lorant groaned at the dig, knowing he wasn't going to live this down for a while.