Warin glared. "Shut it. I don't need to hear that from someone out of Western Wind Division."
Buck's smile was dangerous. "Oh? You say that like there's something wrong with Western Wind."
Eva stepped forward before Warin could respond. It was late and she was tired. She didn't have the energy or motivation to listen to them trade insults.
Or worse—challenge each other to a fight.
"If you want Sebastian to stop, you could start by referring to him as a Kyren. They're not fond of being called a 'winged horse'. They consider it an insult," Eva said.
Warin pressed his lips together as he eyed her with a nonplussed expression as if to ask if she was really lecturing him at a time like this.
Yes, yes, she was.
Eva couldn't think of a better time or one more suited to making her point.
If Warin wanted a favorable outcome, he could begin by treating Sebastian with the respect a fellow sentient deserved.
Not insulting him would be a good start.
Eva's mama taught her the value of being polite. She might not always use those teachings, but it was a valuable life skill to have in her pocket.
"Fine!" Warin said, giving in. "Kyren. Sebastian. Whatever you want to call him. Just please tell him to stop breathing down my neck."
For someone who wanted a favor, he sure wasn't being polite about it.
"Woman," Warin started when Eva just stared at him.
Caden stepped close, invading the other man's personal space. "You don't talk to her in that tone."
Caden's voice was low, but even from here his threat was unmistakable. It was a quiet assurance that spoke louder than a hundred explicit threats ever could.
Fierce. I approve.
Sebastian would. Though truthfully, Eva did as well.
In the grand scheme of things, Warin's words were inconsequential. A mosquito buzzing around her ear. Annoying but ultimately forgotten in the next second.
They couldn't draw blood. At least not physically.
It was when those words were repeated over and over again. When that sort of thinking spilled into other avenues that they inflicted slow bleeding mental cuts that accumulated into a myriad of wounds that sucked the life out of you.
Caden's actions let others know such things wouldn't be tolerated. Even if Eva let them go for the sake of keeping the peace, he wouldn't.
Nor should she. Allowing a trespass once would tell the Trateri it'd be allowed again. Eva had no intention of living a life where others were allowed to slight her at their own leisure.
She deserved more—and she'd take it.
"Alright, I understand," Warin said, almost flinching under Caden's regard.
Eva had a feeling he would have retreated from Caden if not for Sebastian behind him.
Warin flicked Eva a look as if to ask what she was waiting for.
Eva let the moments slide past. Enjoying his discomfort wasn't nice of her, but then she'd never pretended to be a kind person. Sometimes people got what they deserved.
Finally, Eva took mercy on him. "Sebastian."
The Kyren looked at her.
"It's enough."
Eva glared at his innocent expression when he still didn't move. He knew that look didn't work on her anymore. He understood very well what she was saying.
"He's learned his lesson. You can let him go."
I don't agree.
Of course, he wouldn't. Why make anything easy when it was so much more fun to be difficult?
The fire fox landed on Sebastian's head, appearing out of nowhere. He scolded Sebastian and Warin with several high-pitched yips before flame shot out of him, singeing the ground in either direction.
Gawain jerked next to Eva before controlling his reaction. The onlookers drew back, aiming cautious gazes that didn't quite hide their fear at the fire fox.
Eva grimaced at the charred ground. "Look what you did. You got the fire fox all riled."
It's not my fault the overgrown rodent got all huffy.
The fire fox lifted his upper body and pounced on Sebastian's head, making it bob.
"Don't you dare." Eva pointed at the fire fox in warning as flame flickered at the end of one tail. "I'm not explaining to the Kyren why their proud son came home missing his mane."
The fire fox's angry chattering sounded like back talk to Eva. Once again, she wished she could understand what he was saying.
Nonetheless her warning seemed to have gotten through to him as the flame went out and his tails drooped.
Eva turned her gaze to the culprit who'd started all this. "Let him go. We both know you're not going to do anything to him anyway."
Sebastian got an insulted expression on his face. I might. There's a lot of meat on him and you know arrogant warriors are my favorite. They're the tastiest.
Eva shook the uncomfortable image of Kyren feasting on human body parts from her brain. "You promised. You don't eat humans and I don't avoid your kind for the rest of my life."
Warin blanched. "What did she just say?"
Roscoe grinned. "Oh, yeah. Kyren consider humans a delicacy. You should have seen how quickly they stripped the flesh from bone off those who tried to enslave them."
Warin gulped, his unease reflected in the rest of those from Lion and Rain.
Roscoe and the others from camp had been with Eva on that first trip. As beautiful and majestic as the Kyren seemed, the mythologicals also had a darker side. One that considered everyone else a potential food source in times of famine. Even other Kyren.
There was still some resistance in Sebastian's expression as he gave her a sulky look. Fine. If you insist.
Oh, Eva did. Eva most certainly did.
The step back Sebastian took was small, but relief ran through the rest of those present—including Eva.
The Kyren were nothing if not unpredictable. There was every chance Sebastian would push the confrontation to the edge and take them to a point of no return.
Sebastian's lip curled, showing their relief was premature. Van tensed, as did Gawain.
Sebastian sneezed, a great glob of snot hitting the back of Warin's head and splattering onto his shoulders.
"Oh my," Fiona said, not quite holding in her laugh at the look of shocked disbelief on Warin's face.
Eva choked, caught between her desire to laugh and the knowledge that doing so wouldn't help the situation.
No one reacted, including Warin as he stood frozen in position, cringing as he stared blindly ahead.
Sebastian whickered and trotted away, his tail and wings held high.
A snicker broke the silence. Others followed quickly.
Buck reached out to poke at the globs of snot, withdrawing before actually touching the sticky liquid. "That's embarrassing."
Ghost nodded, looking repulsed.
To Eva's surprise, Warin didn't seem furious as his face worked. There was none of the rage or anger she would have expected. Instead, she saw excitement.
"Am I the only one he's sneezed on?" Warin asked.
"Yes?" The raised inflection in Eva's voice made that more of a question than a statement.
Warin lifted his hands, rubbing the snot further into his hair as a mad laugh broke free. "The first Trateri to have that honor." To Buck. "You're jealous, aren't you?"
Buck looked like he was debating whether Warin was insane. "Not the word I would use."