Part 1:

"No hard feelings, princess," the dragon says as she dips her great golden head through one of the arched doorways that line Melisana's wing of the palace. "You'll be coming with me though. You know how this goes."

Melisana heaves out an exasperated sigh. "For the spirits' sake, Korana, again? This is the fifth time this season!"

Draconic faces aren't built for expressing shame and Korana doesn't feel it anyway. Melisana knows this because Korana has told her several times before how impressed she is by her own cunning in bringing kidnapped royalty back to her lair in exchange for ransom. Melisana hadn't agreed, but it's hard to argue with someone with five-foot-long teeth in her grin, and she is grateful that Korana had been honourable enough to not eat her at any point.

"Your dear queen mother pays well," is Korana's answer with a shrug. The motion of her wings knocks over a priceless statuette carved by one of Melisana's ancestors.

"You could at least try not to break all of my belongings in the process," Melisana grumbles as she grabs the bag of essentials she'd started keeping after the third kidnapping and walks over to her. The guards outside her rooms stay still and silent, clutching their weapons tightly but making no moves towards the dragon; the queendom had paid dearly during that first encounter when they'd tried to fight off the dragon taking the heir to the throne, and after their efforts had proved ineffective at anything except provoking the dragon's ire, the queen had ordered them to stand down so as to prevent further loss of life. Better that only one life was lost, she'd said, even if that one was her child.

Delicately scooping up Melisana in a clawed hand large enough to fully enclose her, Korana spins around and launches herself into the air, flying swiftly northbound towards her lair in the warmer parts of the region. The wind tears at Melisana's thick hair and snatches at the edge of her tunic, chilling her down to the bone, and she's glad when a short time later Korana lands with a bone-rattling thud at the mouth of a familiar cave.

"And now to wait for your negotiator," Korana says in satisfaction, settling herself down across the entrance. "Make yourself comfortable, you know where things are."

There's no way to get past her, Melisana knows from hard-learned experience, so she picks her way through the rocks and wind-blown debris as she heads deeper in, following a smaller tunnel branching off from the main cavern until she reaches a pile of furs and pine branches next to a shallow indentation filled with clear water. With another sigh, she drops her bag to the ground and lays down on her makeshift bed. This will be home sweet home for the next week until Tenir arrives.

Their relationship had started as nothing more than the occasional word passed from princess to guard, Tenir just one of many in a rotating line of people trained to give their lives to keep her safe. She knew their names, but little more than that; as heir, she had many duties and little time for more than minimal social pleasantries. But things had changed after the first time Korana had entered their lives. Tenir had been part of the group sent to rescue her and while others had tried to strike the dragon down, he had instead proven himself a surprisingly eloquent negotiator. Korana had been intrigued enough to agree to a duel (which Tenir had lost, though he'd fought well) in exchange for a smaller ransom that wouldn't beggar the queendom, and after their return, Tenir had been given a knighthood and the position of Heir's Champion.

In the years since then, Melisana and Tenir have grown closer, with each offering the other a sympathetic ear and advice and eventually coming to consider themselves dear friends. Each time Korana takes her and Tenir chases after them though, Melisana fears that this might be the one when Korana decides she's bored of their back-and-forth and ends it.

There's nothing she can do but wait though, so wait she does. Korana brings her seared rabbits and wild greens to eat and they talk occasionally, but for someone used to a day full of decisions to make and people to manage, the passage of time is frustratingly slow.

With little else to do, it's easy to notice small details; the pile of coins, gems, and beautiful shimmering cloth that makes up Korana's hoard has definitely been moved closer to the entrance, and if Melisana's not mistaken, it seems less haphazardly piled and more arranged than last she saw it. On the fifth day, she catches sight of Korana sweeping aside some of the larger rocks in the entrance with her tail, and on the seventh day she notices Korana scraping her horns and claws against a particular rock to give them a burnished gleam.

"He'll be here soon," Korana says with a grin when Melisana cautiously asks about it. "Can't have the place looking like a troll's den." Which is not something that Korana has ever cared about before, but Korana refuses to elaborate further.

True to her word, Tenir arrives less than an hour later with a small contingent behind him. He's weary and scuffed from the journey, but there's a spark in his eyes and the hint of a smile lurking about his mouth as he looks up at Korana lounging on her hoard and says, "I hadn't realised you enjoyed our lady's company so much that you would bring her here again before the season's end, Korana."

Korana gives a languid stretch before descending, her wings nearly scraping the walls on either side of her. "How else would I make sure that my hoard has enough to be worthy of me? Find some other humans who aren't nearly as entertaining as you?" she replies, baring her teeth in something that Melisana can't tell is a grin or a threat. Knowing Korana, it could be both.

"I'm flattered," Tenir says with a little bow of his head. "Would you tell me your desires? We have a great deal of that crimson silk you took a liking to last time, if that is of interest. It would look beautiful against your scales."

"My desires, hmm..." Korana lowers her head so that she's at eye level with Tenir. He doesn't flinch. "I can think of a few things. Ten thousand yian and a dozen bolts of that silk would be good, yes. Five in crimson and the rest in any colours you think I would like. Surprise me."

Korana's not the only one surprised - Melisana is taken aback by how little Korana is asking for compared to her usual requests. By the look on his face, Tenir is thinking the same. "And... is that all?" he asks cautiously.

She lets out a growl of a laugh, blowing air like a desert wind across his face. "Of course not," she says. "I also want you to fight me, my negotiator."