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Peregrine covered his mouth in awe and looked down at the parcel. The silk was plain, but he supposed he could fashion it into a nice enough tunic given time. It would be of far higher quality than any of the tunics he’d worn while in the cloister—that was certain.
He set the note near Pake and went to remove the fabric from its box when it tinkled in the same way fine jewelry did. Stunned, Peregrine dropped the entire thing and poked at it.
There was something inside.
“What’s all this?” he asked, but no one was there to answer. It would be up to him alone to find out.
Peregrine unfolded the silk with trembling fingers and found not more raw fabric beneath it, but finely crafted garments made from airy fabrics that would do well to keep the body cool even in the midday heat. They were not in the styles he’d seen most commonly in Ljouwert, and while they seemed very strange and foreign, he assumed they were fashionable in their current corner of the world.
Included with his new clothing was a king’s ransom of golden jewelry—jeweled necklaces, engraved bangles, and delicate anklets. There were some pieces Peregrine had no idea how to wear, but suspected were for other parts of his body—his ears, his chest, his hips. Were he to sell what he found, there would be nothing stopping him from setting off into the world and living a life of luxury wherever he pleased.
But Peregrine didn’t long for freedom.
Not anymore.
The adventure he’d found with Sebastian was better than any he could have dreamed of having on his own.
“Oh, Pake,” he whispered, and held out his hand for his tortoise, who climbed with some effort onto his palm. “Look at it. Look at all of it. Can you believe it? There’s so much.”
Pake opened his mouth and closed it gently around Peregrine’s little finger, as if to give him a hug.
“My lord wants me to have it.” Peregrine lifted one of the garments out of the box and laid it across his lap. It appeared to be fitted to his exact measurements, although he hadn’t the faintest clue how. Sebastian did not seem particularly mindful of such details. “What should we wear, Pake? All of it is so lovely.”
Pake closed his mouth around Peregrine’s pinkie a second time.
“Oh, you are quite the visionary, aren’t you?” Peregrine lifted his friend and kissed him on his head. “Yes, I think that will do nicely. Lord Sebastian will be quite pleased.”
Peregrine dressed in one of the outfits afforded to him and found it both billowy and comfortable, if rather sheer. It seemed to him as though the clothing belonged either above or below another layer, but none of what he’d been given was a match.
It made little difference.
Pedigree omegas were taught not to be ashamed of their bodies, and while Peregrine did not very much like the claw marks that now scarred his chest, he otherwise found the outfit to be charming.
It took him a much longer time to dare touch the jewelry, and in the end he only summoned the courage to do it after Pake climbed into the box and tried to eat one of the earrings.
“No,” Peregrine scolded, and set the naughty tortoise aside. “We do not eat the jewelry. It belongs to our lord, the dragon.”
Pake wandered off. It seemed he cared not for dragons or their treasure, but rather for things to fit in his mouth. It was, therefore, imperative that Peregrine move the jewelry out of his reach… and there seemed no better way to do it than to put it on himself.
It was such a selfish pleasure, to be a Disgrace adorned with riches the likes of which few other omegas would ever see, but Peregrine had been given it freely and instructed to put it on. So put it on he did.
The gold chilled his skin and the gemstones were both heavier and smoother to the touch than he’d imagined. When he rose, his bangles clinked together and the dainty chains he wore tickled as they tumbled into place. They made music when he walked—soft clinks and jingles that sounded like luxury brought to life. While it was embarrassing to think of a lowly creature like himself worthy of wearing such finery, he supposed that it was fitting—dragons were being made inside of him, and they deserved to be surrounded by riches.
“Let’s return you to the courtyard, Pake,” Peregrine said, and scooped Pake up. “I haven’t a clue if our lord is home yet, but if he is, I should thank him. It’s only polite.”
Pake answered by mouthing Peregrine’s thumb.
Peregrine took it to mean he agreed.
* * *
Sebastian was not in the courtyard. Peregrine found him disrobing in their chamber, back to the door, two hours later, having just returned home from the bazaar.
“My lord,” Peregrine said softly as he closed the door. “Thank you for the gifts today.”
Sebastian looked over his shoulder and seemed about to speak, but when he spotted Peregrine, his eyes went dark with desire and whatever he was about to say was forgotten. With one smooth movement, Sebastian stripped off the tunic he’d been untying and came to Peregrine bare-chested, his excitement burgeoning.
