“I hear you’ve been up to quite a bit,” Fenrir said, grinning down at his daughter.

  Phaedra just stared at her dad, struggling to keep herself from feeling excited. It was moments like this when she could almost forget he was a brutal demon who could rip out her spine with a single hand. His tail was actually wagging from his seated position across from her. “Not that much, Daddy.”

  “Nonsense!” Fenrir said, his voice dripping with pride. “You barely left my lands a few days before you had a territory of your own. I can’t say how proud I am of you.”

  “I-it really wasn’t that hard,” Phaedra said sheepishly, her cheeks burning with embarrassment.

  “Not that hard? Ohhhh, my sweet, humble little lamb chop,” Fenrir said, practically gushing with adoration. “Not to mention I hear you’ve managed to tame the Ascended Dragon.”

  “Tame may be a strong word,” Phaedra said, nervously poking her fingers together and struggling to keep her wool from expanding out around her. “It’s more that we came to an agreement. Her people are safe, my territory is controlled, she doesn’t have to die, I have an Ascended Dragon that’s kind of loyal to me. Carth even tried to use her against me, but well… she kept to her side.”

  “I see,” Fenrir said with a deep, growling chuckle. “What are the terms of this agreement? They must be incredible.”

  “Daddddddy,” Phaedra said in a whiny tone. “You can’t just try and steal my methods. I worked really, really hard to get her under control like this.”

  “Awwww, come on, you can tell me just a little bit?” Fenrir asked.

  “Fiiiiine,” Phaedra said. “But only a little bit. She realllllllly hates you,” she said. “And, luckily, that hate doesn’t extend to me. She knows if she kills me, you’ll come and kill her.”

  “That’s it?” Fenrir asked.

  “No,” Phaedra said. “But that’s all I’m going to tell you.” She paused. “But, ummm, seriously? Can you send a warning next time you’re going to send someone? She almost tried to eat Circe.”

  “Really?” Fenrir asked, an amused grin on his lips. “I would have expected it would have been a close fight.”

  “Probably,” Phaedra mumbled before glancing away. “If uhhhh… I hadn’t taken the Ascended Dragon’s collar off.”

  Silence seemed to linger in the air after that. She lowered her eyes and didn’t say a word, hoping it was going to be okay. Finally, he spoke up. “Phaedra.”

  Ohhhhh. Her name. That wasn’t a good sign. “D-daddy…”

  “Don’t you ‘daddy’ me,” Fenrir said. “You removed her collar?”

  “Yes,” Phaedra said. “Well, okay. Technically Carth did.”

  “Carth removed it,” Fenrir said. “And you kept it off?”

  “Welllll…” Phaedra said sheepishly, before lowering her eyes. “He kind of… tricked me into a fight with her and him. He assumed she’d help him, but we’d already had an agreement so… instead she killed him and ate his heart.”

  “SHE killed him?” Fenrir asked.

  “In my name,” Phaedra said quickly. “Still counts.”

  “Phaedra!” he snapped, his eyes narrowing on her.

  She cowered and pulled back, her wool growing out around her. “D-daddy, I have it under control! I swear!”

  “Damn it,” Fenrir said coldly. “I knew letting you go off on your own was a bad idea. You need to get back there and, no. I’ll go back and--”

  “NO!” Phaedra yelled. “Dad! I have it handled! You can’t just come in and – I have it under control. Please! You’ve already undermined any respect I have without you coming in and trying to re-collar the dragon I have perfectly under control!”

  “And how can you possibly have her under control?” Fenrir asked, slamming his fists down on the table.

  “I just, I… she listens to me!” Phaedra said, scrambling for an answer.

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  “No, she doesn’t,” Fenrir said through gritted teeth. “She’s using you. You’re too young and naive for this. Damn it, if she knows… no. She couldn’t. Could she?”

  “What, about Medon returning?” Phaedra asked.

  Fenrir froze, his eyes wide. He let out a low growl. “Who?”

  “Circe,” Phaedra said. “She kind of made a whole big deal about it.”

  “Damn it,” Fenrir said, shaking his head. “How much did she find out?”

  “Just that the hero summoned from another world is apparently returning,” Phaedra said. “So… what, did they summon another one?” she asked, desperately trying to hide how interested she was.

  “If only it were that simple,” Fenrir said. “Damn it. If the Ascended Dragon knows, then she’s certainly biding her time. I should kill her before--”

  “I have her under control!” Phaedra yelled, slamming her hands down on the table. “Daddy! Will you stop trying to kill my fri-- my pet!”

  Fenrir’s eyes narrowed on her again. “Did… you say friend?”

  “N-no,” Phaedra said sheepishly, pulling back. “I said pet.”

  “Phaedra,” Fenrir said again. “No, this is too much for you. She--”

  “She told me her name!” Phaedra said, playing her last desperate card.

  That, at least, made him go still. Even his tail had frozen. She sat there, watching and waiting for his next move. After what felt like an eternity, he began to chuckle. “You can’t be serious.”

  “She did,” Phaedra said.

  “Obsius tried for ages to get a hold of it,” Fenrir said. “How did you learn it?”

  “She uhhhh… I ummmm…” Phaedra gulped and felt red fill her cheeks. “I… made her fall in love with me.”

  Fenrir just stared at her for a few more moments before he began to laugh even harder.

  “W-what? I did! It’s not funny! Y-you don’t believe me?” Phaedra asked.

  “No, I believe you,” Fenrir said with an amused snicker. “You truly are your mother’s daughter.”

  Phaedra’s heart skipped a beat and she stared at him. “I… am?”

  “Aye,” Fenrir said, the rage replaced by a soft, gentle smile. He then frowned and shook his head. “No, it--”

  “Tell me,” Phaedra said softly. “You think… mom… would have been able to?”

  Fenrir gave a soft sigh before nodding. “Yes. Valkyrie was… unique. Special. She was a thing of beauty when she went to war. Her wool would turn as black as the abyss itself, her eyes burning with a flame even I couldn’t quench. I’d never been challenged by a sheep before. Never since.”

  “She was one of your generals, right?” Phaedra asked. “Did she ever… fight Medon?” She knew the answer, but she knew continuing on this line could maybe distract him. Not to mention a small part of her wanted to know more about her mother.

  “No,” Fenrir said. “He never would have survived. She was… incredible. Not as powerful as I, but twice as fierce. She would have torn him apart.”

  “Really?” Phaedra asked.

  “Valkyrie was filled with passion,” Fenrir said, his voice filled with a moment of longing before he gave a soft sigh. “Just like her daughter. You truly are her daughter. I couldn’t imagine anyone else would manage to steal the heart of an Ascended Dragon.”

  “I mean… you said I could do with it what I wanted,” Phaedra said before she could stop herself. “Stealing it seemed funner than eating it.”

  Fenrir gave another sigh before nodding. “Truly, her name?”

  “Yes,” Phaedra said. “No, I won’t tell you. Or anyone else, for that matter.”

  “That Ascended Dragon guards her name zealously. In a way most never try,” Fenrir said before giving a low, ominous chuckle. “If you have managed to turn her to your side and against Medon, you may be the greatest contender in this little hunt.”

  “Hunt?” Phaedra asked.

  Fenrir paused and shook his head. “No, not yet. You need to wait until everyone has arrived.”

  “What hunt?” Phaedra asked.

  Fenrir shook his head. “Nuh uh. You need to wait and be patient, my little lamb chop. Just because you’re my favorite doesn’t mean I can help you cheat.”

  “Dadddd,” Phaedra whined again. “Come oooooon. What hunt?”

  Fenrir sighed before, grudgingly, he gave a nod. “Fine, fine. Just one tiny, itty bitty hint. The hunt for Medon.”

  Phaedra screamed internally, but tried, desperately, to keep it together. “So… he’s alive? But I thought you… killed him?”

  “Oh, I did,” Fenrir said. “Which makes this one of the greatest opportunities in centuries. Perhaps one in comparison to the Name Hunt of Fenrir.”

  “What’s… what’s that mean?” Phaedra asked. “You can’t hunt Medon’s name though, can you?”

  “No, no more hints,” Fenrir said. “You’ll just need to be patient.” Grudgingly, he got to his feet. “As it is, I should go check on my guest. You, dear, should get ready. It’s not often that the family gets together.”

  “But daddy--”

  “Just be patient,” Fenrir said before turning and leaving her behind, ignoring her whining and calls after him.

  Phaedra watched him go, that knot of worry in her stomach only getting tighter. She was going to die. She could feel it.

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