《Into the fire》


 When Pigs Fly

    Renna was feeding the pigs - three of them. She cleaned out the through, poured the slop in and watched as the pigs ate. Occasionally she would reach over and scratch one of them on the back amused how the enjoyment of scratching made the pig forget the food for a moment. Soon, for the midsummer festival, one of them will be roasted and served and the thought of it made her rather happy - she loved fire and roasted meat, the former a rare delicacy in her life.


    She picked up her bucket and started going back to the house but did not get that far - a strong gust of wind pushed her to the ground and the next thing she heard was a pig squealing. She looked back at the enclosure. It had only 2 frightened pigs and the squeal drew her eyes higher up, off the ground in the air. The pig was flying. Not on its own tho - it was in the claws of an impossible fairytale creature, an impressive blood red dragon. The dragon was now quite high and far with the prey, but not too far for Renna to see the fate of her pig.


    The dragon gracefully let the pig drop from its claws, swooped around to quickly cook it with its flame ending the squeal and then swallow it whole. Feeling fear would have been very appropriate, but Renna felt to her own surprise only extreme annoyance. She could smell the scent of roasted pig all the way to where she was and it made her drool. That had been her roast, not his. Well, she assumed the dragon was male¡­ It certainly behaved male. Greedy pig.


    Renna got up and sighed - unless anyone else saw it, she was in for a beating for the missing pig. And there was more work to do. Farm work never ended.


    Renna was 17, due to be 18 in spring and only daughter with 4 brothers of varying ages. Her mother had died the winter before leaving all the household burdens on her. Her oldest brother would marry soon though and bring a wife to live with him. She would need to find employment elsewhere then. Or marry someone. She knew her father had been looking for a man to take her since she came of age in spring, but wasn¡¯t having much luck. Renna¡¯s father may give her a small beating over the pig, but she knew he loved her quite enough to make sure that she would not go to a bad man - did not matter much if it was either as maid or wife. She had doubts about both options. She wasn¡¯t marriage material and as for employment¡­


    Village considered her¡­ well ¡­ crazy. She had been 11 when an older man had raped her... She lost her mind. But not the usual way. She had set the man and his house on fire. He did not survive. If she had been an adult they would have hung her for murder. But she was a child. And the man¡¯s ways were known to quite a few generations of women in the village. So she was simply whipped quite near death and then left to deal with it. She survived. But both things counted against her as a marriage prospect - she wasn¡¯t a virgin and she would probably kill any man mistreating her¡­


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    She scared people. Kids hadn¡¯t been allowed to play with her and young men were warned by their parents to stay away. Not that they needed the warning - she was scary enough on her own. Ever since the incident, Renna had not been able to stand any man¡¯s touch and would react violently even to casual contact. Well, except when it was her baby brother. She had had an equal share in raising him after all. Older brothers respected her space and had never been that close to her. But they were still a tight family and she knew that she was left alone mostly because of her brothers - they would trash anyone who did not respect her space and tried to gang up on her. Having four big brothers to stand up for her was nice. But her future was uncertain at best. She had as much chance of finding a happy life as a pig flying.


    She snorted a laugh - she had just seen a pig flying hadn''t she¡­ It hadn¡¯t been very far¡­ and it had ended in a roasting¡­ but still. A pig did fly.


    She mulled all this over when she was getting on with the chores and then thought about the dragon. It had arrived suddenly now almost six years back, set the ruling lord¡¯s castle on fire and made some demands. First, that once a month he would need a small snack - a farm animal, cow or pig, with preference to pigs from anywhere on the land and once a year, something¡­ more substantial. An unmarried maiden. She had seen the dragon carry the first girl away that year.


    Margarite had been considered crazy too for a different reason - her flaming red hair and unwillingness to bow to anyone. She had been an old maid - 25 already and unmarried at the time. She had been a healer, good with herbs and setting bones, and yet Lord Aris had found her expendable. He regretted it soon enough when his son broke his leg riding the next fall and there was nobody to set it right. He healed crooked and will limp for the rest of his life. Margarite would be amused knowing this little fact.


    For six years, every midsummer, some girl had been grabbed by Lord Aris¡¯s men, stuffed in a sack and taken to the place where their lives would end. It had been a place in the old days where animals would be sacrificed to gods. Now - it was girls. There was a big standing stone there, on top of a bleak hill. There was nowhere to hide for nearly a mile around and everybody could watch the sacrifice. There was still a week to go until midsummer and she wondered who the ¡°lucky" girl would be this time.

 Fate is a funny thing

    Unknown to Renna, there were plenty of witnesses to the flying pig, she was safe on that account. Far greater danger lurked quite near to her.


    Renna¡¯s father was watching her from the house. His mind was troubled. Time was running out for her. He had had no luck finding anyone willing to marry her. Even widows of several wives with households in desperate need of a woman had refused him stating quite bluntly that they would like to live. He couldn¡¯t blame them. But midsummer was approaching .This time, she was of age. They would need to take her away tonight.


    She wouldn¡¯t go alone, Tom, his youngest, would accompany her. They would need to try to make it on their own in the world. Letting her go like that scared him, but it would be too dangerous to wait any longer. Last year, it was a near miss. And she didn¡¯t even know it - they had arranged it to look like an accident when she was away, but it would not work this time. Lord Aris had already decided that it was time to be rid of her and he sadly knew that most of the village approved.


    Lord Aris was also watching from a hilltop nearby. He had accompanied his men to oversee the task at hand. Her brothers had been secured already. One by one, they could be subdued. Not easily, there were a few flattened noses among his men, but no fatalities and the brothers were alive as well, slightly bruised but safely tucked away in his dungeon. He would let them go after midsummer. They were valued in the community and hard workers. But their sister they insisted on protecting was a different story. And he did not like that kind of difference.


    The man she had burned was his friend and guard captain. So he liked little girls a bit more than he should¡­ they were worthless anyway. It would cause a riot to kill a kid, but she wasn¡¯t a kid any more and this was a good cause. And nobody liked her much anyway. He felt rather happy with the way things turned out for him - she would burn too and he would be the good guy in the eyes of the villagers. Fate was a funny thing. His men should be at the farm by now.


    Renna had just picked up a pitchfork to throw some hay in a goat enclosure when she saw movement in the corner of her eyes. It was automatic - the pitchfork went flying in the direction of the movement. Her family had learnt to not startle her so whoever it was, wasn¡¯t family and was up to no good. There was a metallic clang and then scream - pitchfork had skidded on the man¡¯s plate armor and then embedded itself in a crack between plates.


    That was all she saw, because the next moment she was engulfed in darkness, bound and dragged away. She tried fighting but she had no chance against eight men. By the time her father got out of the house she was already on the back of a horse. She could hear his desperate yell. He was calling her name. She let out a breath and whispered to herself ¡°Goodbye, Father¡­¡±


    Lord Aris put her in the dungeon as well. There was still a week to mid summer and he had no intention of letting her get away this time. Besides, she had been a bit bruised by the capture. It would be better to let her heal. Dragon didn¡¯t like bruised fruit. It had been rather angry and set fire to his castle, when Margarite had been served to him abused and barely conscious.


    If this hadn¡¯t been the case¡­ He would have loved to strap that crazy bitch down and have his way with her for hours¡­ Alas, this was an imperfect world. Good thing was, if she didn¡¯t behave he could whip her brothers as much as he liked. So he was quite confident in getting her cooperation. With this in mind he headed for the dungeon to talk things over with her.


    Renna found herself dumped unceremoniously on a hard stone floor. The sack and ropes were removed so she could look around in her new lodgings. It was a cell. A pallet with some old straw, a dirty blanket and a bucket in the corner. And iron bars up front. All light in the cell was coming from torches in the hallway. She had always had unusually good vision at night so the darkness didn¡¯t botherer at all. She went up to the bars and looked out.


    There were other cells. Almost all of them were occupied. Across the hallway, there seemed to be a young man looking back at her and her heart dropped to see it was her little brother Tom. He had a black eye and his clothes were torn. And he looked sad.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Ren.¡± he said, ¡°we had a plan but he got to us first¡­¡± Tom wanted to be a traveling bard. Singing and legends were his passion. So for him, leaving with Renna for a life on the road was just the logical next step.


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    ¡°Are you okay, Ren?¡±, came another familiar voice down the hall. Jack, her oldest brother, was here too.


    ¡°Lord Aris is going to regret this¡­¡± stated a burly voice from the cell next to Renna. Ben. Ben was the village smith and very strong. Someone was hurting right now.


    ¡°Careful, Ben, walls have ears¡­¡± came further down the hall. Aron. Aron wanted to be a scholar. He was leaving soon to study in a monastery far away anyway. He had planned to leave with Renna and Tom tonight. He had been in town getting his supplies when he was rushed by the ruling lord¡¯s men. Much of the same had happened with other brothers. Except Ben. They had come to his smithy and told him Lord needed him to shoe a horse at the castle. They had lured him there and then jumped on him.


    Renna was furious - they had known that the Lord was eyeing her for this year¡¯s sacrifice and not told her before. But she also felt moved that her brothers really cared for her.


    ¡°I''m fine, Jack,¡± she assured him. She knew that if she was to be sacrificed she was safe, until the dragon snacked on her anyway. But the same wasn¡¯t true for her brothers.


    As if on cue Lord Aris arrived and walked straight up to her cell. Renna took a step back, out of his immediate reach. Lord had a reputation too. His dungeons were not a place a woman would escape untouched.


    He looked at her and sneered, ¡°Too bad you are promised to the dragon, I would really like to enjoy you. Lucky for you I like my castle unburned more than some fleeting fun using your body.¡±


    Renna remained silent, but there was murder in her eyes.


    Lord continued, ¡°I don¡¯t like that look. Let¡¯s get one thing clear - I can¡¯t touch you but I CAN do whatever I feel like doing to your brothers. If you want them to walk out of this dungeon after midsummer you will be on your best behavior, you will not fight anyone, you will eat your meals, you will cooperate with preparations of your sacrifice and you will go out there like a good girl and be a good snack.¡±


    He hammered his words in with a steel gaze.


    ¡°Do we have an understanding?¡±, he demanded.


    Renna hung her head.


    ¡°Well?¡±, he demanded again.


    Her mind was racing. She was out of options. Maybe - this was to be her fate from the start. She had always had mixed feelings about that beast. She knew she was supposed to be afraid of it. But the fear never came. It felt more like longing whenever she saw the beast gliding above. And envy. Definitely envy. And those were strange things to feel about a monster in the sky who stole cattle. And she loved her brothers. Maybe it wasn¡¯t that bad of an end. Her brothers couldn¡¯t protect her forever, the village was not accepting her, not after what she had done¡­ This way, she would at least have a purpose.


    She looked up with determination in her eyes, ¡°I agree, but only if you promise to do nothing to my brothers. Not now and not later.¡±


    ¡°Very well. You understand though, that they will need to stay here until the event is over, right? Think of it this way - you will have company.¡± he replied.


    ¡°Will you allow me to say goodbye to my father?¡± she asked.


    ¡°If your behavior is good, I might right before the event,¡± he replied with malice in his voice.


    Renna nodded. The man hated her, he would deny her out of spite. But her brothers would be there and able to pass on what she had to say. Somehow, she felt calm. Her life had a direction now. No ambiguity of the morning when she was tending to pigs was left. Her life was set on a course that was rather firm. And short. But that was fine. It was at least likely to be free of surprises.


    Lord left and for a moment there was silence. Then all of her brothers tried to say something at once yelling over each other so she could not understand a word. She waited, until they quieted down.


    Then she said quietly, ¡°It¡¯s alright¡­ I''ve always wondered what my purpose is. Now I know.¡±


    She smiled grimly, ¡°But if that bastard goes back on his word and does not let you go unharmed, I will come back from hell if I have to and torch this place to the ground.¡±


    Her brothers knew her well enough to respect her resolve. The days left passed, they just spoke of good memories and past days and what the brothers would do when they left this place. She listened. She had not much to say about her future. It was already written, but she loved hearing her brothers. They would live on for her too.


    But her mind kept gravitating back to thinking how fate indeed was a funny thing.

 Letting go

    It was the morning of midsummer. Renna woke on the dirty pallet in her cell and smiled grimly. Today was the day. She had said goodbye to her brothers yesterday. Today, there would not be time for it.


    Instead of breakfast a guard arrived, unlocked the cell and told her to stand still until he puts foot chains on her. She complied. But it was hard. The man slid his hand up her leg after clamping the iron on her ankles. She growled to let him know that this will end in somebody getting hurt and she does not care much who. He removed his hand and ordered her to follow him. He did have orders to not blemish her.


    She went slowly, irons clinking with small steps towards a small house in the castle yard. It turned out to be a washhouse.


    Renna realized she was still in the clothes she had been captured in a week ago and they hadn¡¯t been clean then, they were her work clothes after all. She stank. Her hair was matted with straw from the pallet in the cell. It was dull brown and rather short. Short hair was something not usually seen on women. But that man had held her by her long braid¡­ She had cut it off and thrown it into the house fire she had started, and kept it short since. It had been a while since she had gotten to trimming it so now it was almost to her shoulders and full of crap.


    The idea of washing it all out appealed to her very much so she hoped that¡¯s why she was brought there. Two older servant women entered with towels and clean clothes and the guard stepped outside confirming this to be the case.


    The women were polar opposites - one tall, thin and tight lipped and the other small, bubbly and chatty. The tight lipped one, whose name was Rose apparently, as the bubbly Alice told her, just went to work preparing the bath, as if she wasn¡¯t there at all. Alice however came over and introduced herself. She looked at her hair, found a bunch of brushes and commanded her to sit to get most of the muck out of it.


    Renna wasn¡¯t used to being served. Even her mother had hardly bothered pampering her. As one of 5, you manage. She did not know either of the ladies - they were not from the village, but from amongst Lord¡¯s personal servants that usually were hired from the trading city many days away. She wondered if they knew who she was¡­ but it wasn¡¯t worth asking. She could enjoy this. Life was short. And hers shorter than most.


    Soon muck was out of her hair and Alice was helping her undress. Next up was the bath. She found it luxurious - at home It would be one bath water for the whole family and times when she could go first were rare. Usually she would be last and by then the water would be cold and very dirty¡­ But this bath, it was just for her with perfectly warm clear water. And there was even a nice scent in the air and she couldn¡¯t find its source. She had to ask.


    Alice laughed and showed her a bar of scented soap - a luxury few could afford. Renna was amazed - lord was really trying to suck up to this dragon trying to make her as appetizing as possible.


    ¡°Oh well, I might as well go out smelling good,¡± she figured.


    Ladies bathed and dried her and then dressed her in her gown and put a braid of white flowers on her head. The dress was a simple white garment, but she could not shake the feeling that it looked like a wedding dress. The same dress style had been used for all girls sacrificed. She had wondered how he had gotten them to cooperate. Now she knew - hostages.


    She wondered how she looked¡­ As if responding to her thoughts, Alice extracted another luxury item from her tool bag - a silver mirror. Small hand mirror reflected showed her somebody she hardly recognized. The girl in the mirror was almost pretty. Her figure was still as stocky as it had always been - she was not a delicate girl, but the dress gave it a feminine shape. She had gone to great lengths to not be pretty to be honest. She was stocky, rough handed, scared all over and scary looking. This was the last day of her life and she was safe from any men by threat of her future owner. She could look pretty today.


    She suddenly remembered had been called a pig as taunt by other kids when she was younger. She snorted - it was funny because she was going to now share the fate of her pig. She let go of the memory and looked up.


    Alice took the mirror, packed it and set to leave. As she stepped out of the door leaving Rose alone with her for a moment, the former did something unexpected. Rose stepped up to her, said ¡°From your Father,¡± put something in her palm and left quickly. Renna had only a moment to look at it, before the guard entered again.


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    It was her mother¡¯s amulet. It was a small ivory egg engulfed in copper flames. It was priceless. A family heirloom. She could not believe her father would give this to her considering where she was going¡­ But yet, here it was. She quickly hid it in the bodice of her dress. They would take it, if they saw she had it.


    Guard entered and told her to follow. She knew what was next. There was a cage in the middle of the courtyard that usually held the people punished for various misdemeanors. Today it was empty and there was a heavy chair in the middle. She sat down and felt rope getting tied tightly around her waist. The cage was closed. A guard stood on each side of the cage ensuring that nobody got too close.


    It was The Showing. Any villager could come and look at the sacrifice. Just look, not touch. She looked at the crowd. They were eyeing her impassively. Some faces showed open relief. But there were a few sad faces too. Mostly women¡­ Those with whom she shared an experience of abuse. Then she saw her father. He looked older somehow. The week had aged him several years worth.


    He made eye contact but did not try to approach. Guards would not allow it anyway. But he did say goodbye. Well¡­ he said - safe journey. That¡¯s what the hand signal meant. They always used it, If someone was departing. She found it¡­ strange. As if her father knew something she did not. She pondered her father¡¯s behavior sitting out in the midsummer sun without food or drink for some time.


    The sun was at its highest when the door to the cage was opened and a table placed in front of her. Soon it was covered in delicious food. Having received prison rations of bread and water for the past week, the feast was definitely inviting. A woman, another one she did not know appeared to serve her at the table. She started by covering her dress with a napkin. As she was tied to the chair she was unable to lift dishes to her plate herself, she had to ask her to do that. She was amused. She decided to stick it to the lord in one more last way - they called her the pig, right? Well, a pig never turned its nose up on good food. So¡­ She was going to eat. ALL of it. Why not - it was her last meal after all. Renna got to work destroying the feast in front of her.


    It took her quite a while, but she did finish it all. The guards were eyeing her incredulously and the serving lady was holding in a chuckle. She had expected to just stand there next to a despondent girl unwilling to eat, not one shoving the feast down with apparent satisfaction praising the food liberally on the way.


    Lord Aris arrived just as she finished the last piece of the roasted chicken and flushed it down with the last of his best wine. Clearly in a jovial mood the little pig looked him squarely in the eye, dipped the glass his way, chirped loudly, ¡°Thank you for the meal, Lord!¡± and belched loudly. Lord Aris was seething. Evening could not come fast enough to wipe the smirk off this little pig''s face.


    Renna enjoyed herself. After the meal, she of course had a need to go to the outhouse. So the guards had to untie her, take her over the courtyard, let her go to the outhouse watched by the same lady who had served for the meal and then back. The lady had praised her spirit in the outhouse and laughed at the lord¡¯s face when she had thanked him for the meal. She had laughed with her.


    When she was back in her chair, she immediately felt sleepy - she always did after a big meal. Within 10 minutes she was actually snoring. The guards around her cage looked at her incredulously. She snored so loudly the whole courtyard could hear it. The gawking crowd shushed and then started furiously whispering. If nothing else had proven she was nuts, this absolutely did - only somebody totally mad could actually sleep in her position.


    Sun was getting low when she woke up. She looked around. Courtyard was full of people now. Soon, it was time to go. The procession was already gathering. She had missed last year¡¯s gathering because her father insisted she went on a trading trip with Tom and they did not come back on time. But they were all the same, really. Soon some guards hoisted her on a platform cart along with the chair and the procession started moving towards the stone.


    She saw her brothers jogging along with the cart still in chains. Lord had wanted them to see her end. She was still glad to see them though. When the cart stopped, they made the same hand signal - safe journey. She smiled.


    The standing stone was scorched black on one side. She knew why and had a plan. She stood calmly while they tied her to the rock and tried to concentrate. She would need to be fast, but ¡­ there might still be a chance. She knew the terrain. She knew that there was a river that the hill overhung in one direction. It was a steep fall though¡­ If she could get there, jump ¡­ survive the fall ¡­ she might have a chance.


    She took a deep breath and waited. Wind picked up kicking up dust eddies. The beast was circling her. She focused, waiting and tensing against the ropes holding her to the rock. Wave of scorching heat passed her on both sides and the ropes fell away. She ran. She ran as fast as he could for the overhang and the possibility of surviving.


    For a moment the beast seemed confused and then¡­ amused? He raced behind her and just as he was coming up to the jump closed his talons firmly around her waist and pulled her off the ground letting the band of woven flowers drop to the ground.


    Renna screamed out in rage. Then she let go of her life as she knew of it and passed out high above the ground in the talons of a beast carrying her away.

 Going home

    The dragon was indeed surprised. Nobody had tried running before. The girl they had given her this year was feisty and somehow familiar. Oh yes ¡­ He had caught her staring at him sometimes. Others ran for cover when he had been out hunting but she stared. The pig a week ago had been hers. He had seen her in the yard and wanted ¡­ well to show off really. So he had done the stunt with the pig¡­ it wasn¡¯t the tastiest way to eat a pig really¡­ but it was flashy and she quite definitely was looking. Somehow it had been satisfying in other ways than as a meal to consume the pig that way. He was old. These boyish stunts should have been beyond him. But¡­ well. It was fun.


    And now she was actually trying to run from him. Straight for the river too. It wasn¡¯t a bad plan¡­ but he was faster. He went after her and caught her as she was ready to leap. The beast rumbled: ¡°Mine!¡± carrying her away towards the mountains.


    The human part of the dragon''s mind wondered about that¡­ the beast had never been possessive over these girls. Sometimes he felt he demanded them for him, so he had company. But he was sad about their fate. They would not last long in the dragon''s lair. And neither would this one¡­ He was steeling his heart. This time, he would fight the urges.


    The dragon¡¯s lair was far. He needed to stop and make sure she was safe for the journey. On an empty meadow he landed slowly putting her passed out form on the ground. His shape shifted. Soon instead of a dragon a naked man stood in the middle of a dragon size harness. He extracted from the harness a big but light bag, walked up to her and eyed her carefully.


    She was not beautiful in the conventional sense, but even passed out, he could feel the fire in her. Strongest yet he had felt in any human before. Her body was riddled in scars. Life had not been kind to her even though she was still quite young and yet it seemed to have not broken her spirit. He smiled. It was going to be an interesting winter with such a companion. And her lack of conventional beauty may help in keeping her safe when spring comes.


    He unpacked her travel gear. It was a furry sleeping bag designed to be carried by the dragon. He packed her carefully in the big bag hoping she would not awaken and panic before they were home, but even if she did, the soft bag would keep her safe. They would need to go high and she would freeze to death without the bag. Soon he was done with the packing. He stood back in the center of the harness and called the dragon forth. He surfaced, filled out the harness, carefully picked up the handles of the sleeping bag and took off.


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    They were going home.


    Renna woke up in the stomach of a dragon. It wasn¡¯t what she had expected. It was furry and dry. And she wasn¡¯t cooked. But she was definitely inside a flying dragon, joisted up and down in the rhythm of its wings with wind howling outside. It was surprisingly comfortable. She considered panicking for a moment, but it did seem to have much point. It would not change anything and would make it just more uncomfortable.


    She used the time for thinking. She fished her mother¡¯s amulet from the the bodice of her dress and held it in her hand, feeling it. It was pitch dark in the dragon so touch would suffice for now. Suddenly, reddish glow illuminated her surroundings. She lifted the amulet to her eyes. The copper flames surrounding the ivory egg were glowing. In the light of the amulet she could see that she was in a bag made of furry skins. She wasn¡¯t eaten? Maybe it was still full from the pig and was saving her for later? She was annoyed. She had given up already. So how come it wasn¡¯t over yet?


    And the amulet itself, it should not be doing that¡­ It never had before¡­ but well. She had never held it in the darkness either. Maybe it had always been a bit magical.


    And then there was her father and brothers, wishing her a safe journey¡­ She was wondering if they knew something she did not. Because she was indeed now clearly on a journey to a place she knew nothing of in a bag carried by a giant beast.


    She stashed away the amulet and struggled to stand upright. It was possible with a degree of effort. Then she reached up trying to find an edge to grab on to. She did find something and pulled. Her fingers met painfully cold outside air. She let go. It''s probably better to stay in the warm pouch, she decided.


    She slouched down and sighed. The rhythmic beating of the wings and howling of the wind were making her sleepy again. Soon, she fell asleep again and dreamt of flying on her own wings. It was a familiar dream she visited often.


    It did indeed seem to be for now a safe journey.

 The Frightening Unknown

    When Renna woke up next she was in bed. A magnificent four poster bed with drapes. As sleepiness lifted she realized she was naked. Her dress was missing. She sat up with a start. She didn¡¯t give a damn about the dress or nakedness, but she did care about the amulet. There was something around her neck and with relief she found it to be the amulet. Whoever had taken her dress, had put it on her.


    Then she blushed. A vague memory stirred of being carried in the arms of someone definitely male and stronger than Ben. Ben had stopped picking her up like that years ago.


    She had been about to panic when he whispered ¡°sleep¡­¡± and reality faded away again at his command. It better not be him who took away her clothes. She scanned her body and found no hints of any violation having occurred while she was sleeping. Not yet anyway.


    Then she laughed¡­ being raped for now was a secondary concern. She looked around. The room was actually a cave. Besides the bed it contained a dressing table with a mirror and a large wardrobe. As she was naked, the wardrobe seemed like the first sensible place to find a cure for that. She slid herself out of the bed and went to the wardrobe, opened both doors and looked in. The next second she slammed them shut again. That wardrobe¡­ wasn¡¯t normal. It was bigger on the inside! Much bigger. Infinitely bigger. One could get lost in it.


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    She opened one door carefully again, closed her eyes and reached in. She could feel some clothes quite nearby. So she just grabbed the first thing under her hand. It was black and sparkly and looked like it would be skin tight. And there was no way in hell she was going to wear it. She shoved it back and grabbed for something else. This time the dress that he had managed to retrieve was slightly faded blue and quite sensible. And big enough to fit. She put it on.


    As she turned away from the wardrobe her breakfast was floating in. Well¡­ almost floating. It was being carried by someone. A human shaped flame. The flame was translucent, naked and clearly female. She placed her tray on the bed and said with a voice that sounded like a crackling fireplace, ¡°Please have breakfast, my lady.¡± Then she stepped out of the room.


    For the first time Renna felt truly scared. This wasn¡¯t the world she knew, there was too much magic. Nothing made sense. Starting with the fact that she was still alive and being fattened up apparently. She moved the food to the dressing table and crawled back under the covers. She wasn¡¯t ready to be out yet. She wasn¡¯t sure she would ever be. She had no plan for this. She expected to be dead. And the unknown was much scarier than knowing you would be eaten by a dragon very soon.


    But eventually, fear gets old and smells and sounds of lunch being served came from the other side of the door luring her out.

 Lunch with a stranger

    The dragon was deep in thought sitting in his chair before the fireplace while waiting for lunch to be served. She was not scared of the dragon, but she reacted with panic to being carried by a man. So much so that he had to use magic to subdue her. Good thing she had not awakened outside, where he was unable to pull enough magic to do this. What kind of a past did she have and how come she was expendable?


    And then there was the amulet. It had traces of dragon magic. It was definitely originally from his world, but ¡­ it was bound to her blood. And for a human to be bound to an object of dragon magic by blood¡­ Well. It was impossible. And yet¡­ She existed. It was a puzzle he would have to unravel before spring. Before she was gone¡­


    He heard the creak of a door opening and smiled. Nobody could resist the sounds of lunch being served he suspected and quite rightfully so.


    Renna peeked out of the door. Three flame ladies were busy at the big dining table in the center of the spacious cave room. There were a pair of armchairs by the fire and a chalice with dark red liquid on a table between them. She watched as an arm reached for it from the left hand chair and took it behind the backrest.


    A voice spoke ¡°Come, join me by the fire.¡±


    The voice was warm, inviting¡­ and quite definitely male. Attractively male. And this was a new sensation for Renna. Male voices in general were either neutral or scary. This was¡­ Different. And she found herself complying. Slowly she moved to the unoccupied chair and lowered herself into it trying to not stare at the man in the other chair. Another chalice was placed on the table between them.


    ¡°Try some wine¡± he invited.


    She picked up the chalice and sniffed it. It was a pleasant smell, with a slight hint of honey. It was not really sweet to taste but pleasant nonetheless. She relaxed, sipping her wine. There seemed to be no immediate danger except for the man. And she was now quite sure that this had been the man who had carried her to her bed. So if he was going to do something he would have already. So even that was a lesser risk. But she still wondered¡­


    ¡°Who are you?¡± She blurted out without much thought.


    He chuckled, ¡°So it¡¯s introductions time already? Alright - I am Dragon Arion Darkwind, now exiled from my own realm into this one for reasons we might discuss some other time. Who are you, my lady?¡±


    Renna listened incredulously - did this man actually claim to be the dragon!? And wait - exiled? For unknown reasons?


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    ¡°Well, I answered your question¡­ will you answer mine?¡±, he injected into her derailed thoughts.


    She was obliged to respond.


    ¡°Renna Johansdaughter, dragon sacrifice for the sin of being too damn scary.¡±, she responded darkly.


    ¡°Nothing too interesting about me. I''m just a farm girl¡±, she continued, ¡°But didn¡¯t you just claim to be the dragon? I''m not buying that!¡±


    ¡°Why? Isn¡¯t this place magical enough to make this statement believable?¡±


    She had to concede - normal rules did not seem to apply here. But still. Dragons flew out there, in the normal world¡­


    ¡°Not quite. Dragons exist out there too¡­ In the world I know. And out there a big beast and a man can¡¯t be one and the same.¡±


    She drank some more wine. It seemed to make her braver.


    ¡°Alright¡±, he conceded with a smile,¡± after lunch we will go outside and I will show you. Let¡¯s go eat now.¡±


    They took their glasses and walked over to the table. He held out a chair for her earning a glare promising violence if he was to push his luck but sat curtly anyway.


    The table was exquisitely set. There was only one thing off with it. Everything was roasted or baked.


    Renna could not hold the question in.


    ¡°Why only roasted or baked food?¡±


    He sighed. ¡°They can¡¯t touch water. It hurts them¡­¡±


    Renna understood. Fire ladies. It made sense. But¡­


    ¡°So, when it comes to dishes, you expect me to wash them? Is that why I¡¯m still not eaten?¡±, she asked.


    He laughed. ¡°Not quite. I do have a little bit of magic to handle this small chore. So you need to look further for your purpose.¡±


    Renna smiled. She hated dishwashing. On the other hand¡­ Needing a maid would have been a good explanation, so now she was still lost as to why she was still alive.


    They ate in silence for the rest of the meal. Renna felt his eyes on her when she finally put down the cutlery and looked up.


    ¡°Well, want to see what I promised to show now?¡±, he asked and stood up.


    Renna was hesitant to face the possibility that this man, who seemed quite decent sort, would be the dragon. On the other hand - he had said they would be going outside¡­ Maybe there was a way to escape. She got up and was ready to follow him. But he instead came up to her and offered her his elbow. She had worked as a maid in some of the fancy parties at the castle. This kind of thing was common there so she did know what the gesture was about, but the whole idea of herself as a lady was laughable. She took the offered hand anyway and walked out of the double doors at the other end of the hall with him.


    Lunch with a stranger was over. It was time to get acquainted.

 The Dragon

    They left the parlor area and entered a place that was very dark, but for Renna it also felt spacious. Gigantic was the word hovering in the back of her mind. It took them a couple of minutes to traverse it until they reached a pair of heavy solid iron doors lit with torches visible at the other end. The man opened a smaller door set in the big door and held it open for her. She stepped outside.


    It was early afternoon and the sight that greeted her was both wonderful and despairing. They were high in the mountains and the door opened to a cliff edge. Unless she sprouted a pair of wings, there was no way to leave this place. But the view was indeed beautiful.


    He stepped out next to her, walked closer to the cliff edge and started removing his clothes.


    ¡°Hey, what¡¯s with the clothes?¡± blurted embarrassed Renna.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to ruin them, alright! You must have seen a naked man before, so just think of me like your brother having a bath¡­.¡±, was his irritated reply.


    Renna had of-course seen naked men before. She lived with five men after all. But try as she might, observing this man as one of them was not working. He was muscular, well built and did things to her lower regions that she did not think was possible for any man to do. His manhood was bigger than anything that men of her household could boast with even with some generosity. She tried not to look. But¡­ There was no unseeing. This supposed dragon was messing with her mind already.


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    When he was done stripping she looked back at her, smiled boyishly and shouted ¡°Watch!¡±


    Then he dashed off towards the cliff and jumped off. Renna¡¯s heart skipped a beat. Suicidal was not what she had considered this man to be. But a second later from the same spot he had jumped, the dragon soared into the sky.


    She stared with her mouth open as the beast soared up, did a loop and then gracefully landed on the ledge in front of her.


    Slowly the towering animal lowered his head and brought it quite close to Renna so he could look in her eyes. It was big. Its head was as big as Renna was tall. But in the back of its eyes she felt she could still see the man looking back at her. Right behind this hulking beast who seemed to look at her with ¡­ longing for her to touch him?


    It was strange. She reached out her hand and rubbed its large snout. She knew she should have been frightened, but no fear came. The beast closed its eyes in pleasure and rumbled. The sound was clearly communicating pleasure. Then the dragon seemed to shrink and soon the naked man was again standing at the cliff''s edge.


    He walked up to her smiling and said ¡°Can I have petting too?¡±


    Renna snapped. There was a naked man way too close to her making lewd comments. She kneed him hard in the family jewels and ran for her room.


    It really did not register until she was under the blankets that she had just kicked the dragon where it hurt and she was entirely at his mercy. Then she despaired. She expected vengeance and pain and all the things that came with not willingly submitting to naked powerful men. She cried at first but then slowly sunk into apathy.


    She was done.

 The Sleeping Beauty

    Arion was surprised.


    It had taken him a bit to get up and get dressed. It gave a man time to think about things. Like what the hell was wrong with this woman. She had no fear of the beast, but she would knee him savagely and run away from the man. That was unusual. All of the other girls had been opposite - they would accept the man, but not even acknowledge the dragon.


    He needed information. And there was only one way to get it. He needed to go down there as a human and ask around. Doing that would take him a few days. It may be good for her for him to be away - give her a chance to calm down.


    Arion told the fire ladies to take care of her but not let her go outside. He packed his travel bag and flew away. He came down often to fetch supplies, especially in the second half of the summer when his household was expanded by¡­ a guest. The inn-keeper at the roadside inn greeted him with a welcome appropriate for a well paying regular customer when he arrived.


    He usually got what he needed from the farms surrounding the inn sitting right at the crossing of three major roads in the area, or from the traders passing through the inn. This time he had a different objective however, so he wanted to visit the castle. There was a post coach going that way soon and coming back this way late in the evening and that suited his aims just perfectly. He paid his fare and hopped on the roof. The post boy had trouble controlling his horses today and they arrived half an hour early. Dragon smiled. Horses knew what was behind them, even if people did not.


    The coach stopped at the castle tavern. He got off the coach and went in. If one wanted gossip, this was one place to be. He ordered a beer, paid and sat in a dark corner with it, listening and watching. It wasn¡¯t long until a man in a castle guard uniform mentioned the ¡°crazy bitch¡± that they were finally rid of and with any luck the dragon would choke on her. He also noticed how the woman wiping glasses behind the bar winced and looked at the man with no kind eyes. She was probably the tavern keeper¡¯s wife. He made a note of it and asked her politely what the soldier was talking about when he went to buy another beer, for it sounded like an interesting story.


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    The tavern keeper¡¯s wife was a talkative woman and had told him the whole story of her past. Why not, she was gone¡­ The woman had been one of the few people who liked her. Not in spite of what she had done to the watch captain, but because of it. On top of that her actions on the day had made her a legend. The way she had shoved down her last meal and then taken a nap in the middle of the castle courtyard were discussed thoroughly. People seemed to agree - she had been indeed crazy but in a good way.


    The dragon inquired what had become of her brothers. The lord had had them whipped, but then let them go. The two younger ones had left town immediately after midsummer, but Ben was still at the smithy and Jack was getting married soon, ready to take over running the farm from his father.


    Arion boarded the coach back to his Inn with much to think about. The story filled quite a few gaps. Like why she would knee him like that. But he felt that he was still missing something. Something that maybe only she would be able to tell her.


    Damn, the woman was feisty.


    And then there was the matter of the amulet. Her family were ordinary farmers. How come they had a dragon amulet? That made no sense at all. But there were no more answers to be found here right now.


    He headed back to his cave in the mountains the next morning. He had bought some supplies as well.


    When he arrived one of the fire ladies greeted her at the door and told him that their guest was¡­ unwell. She had not eaten anything for two days and was sleeping all the time.


    He went to her room. She was sleeping again. Untouched lunch was on the dressing table.


    He sighed¡­ Maybe leaving her alone was not the best idea. Time to shake this sleeping beauty up as kissing her would most probably lead straight to pain again. He was thinking about it though and found it to be a surprisingly attractive idea - pain and all. Still, better not¡­


    ¡°Wake up!¡± he yelled, shaking her shoulder and watching her slowly wake up. When she seemed almost awake, he announced, ¡° Dinner is in half an hour. Be there. We need to discuss your chores for tomorrow.¡±

 Knee deep

    Renna was lost in her misery. There seemed to be no hope. She just slept, heedless of time passing. Until there was yelling. It was a familiar kind of yelling. It demanded wakefulness, mentioned dinner and chores. Those things made sense. Men and beasts being one did not. She slowly surfaced.


    ¡°Don¡¯t make me carry you there!¡±, he said as he walked out.


    She sighed, drank some cold tea from her untouched lunch tray and went over to the wardrobe. The dress she had been sleeping in did not look decent any more. She closed her eyes, opened one door and stuck her hand in and pulled out a dress that fit her mood perfectly. It was baggy and gray. She put It on and walked outside.


    Table was still being set by the fire ladies.


    She went over to the fireplace and sat in the chair she had started to consider hers. The other chair was also occupied. He was sitting there looking into the fire thoughtfully.


    ¡°Well, don¡¯t you want to know where I went?¡±, he asked.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t even notice you were away to be honest¡­ I just slept.¡±, she replied, ¡°But since you brought it up - where did you go?¡±


    ¡°To your home town,¡± he curtly replied.


    ¡°So you know¡­¡± she whispered.


    ¡°Yes¡±, he replied quietly, ¡°But maybe, some day, you will tell me your story yourself¡­¡±


    Silence fell for a bit. Her reply was barely audible at the end of it. ¡°Maybe¡±, she said.


    Renna had a burning question, and it could not wait. Not knowing was unbearable.


    ¡°Am I going to be punished for that kick?¡±, she asked.


    He smiled. ¡°Yes.¡±, he said and then seeing her face pale, added, ¡°That¡¯s what the chores are about.¡±


    Renna let out a breath she didn¡¯t know she was holding. It was not what she had been expecting. Work was hardly a punishment, unless he had something particularly unpleasant in mind¡­ But still - work was work. You did it until it was done. All her life had been like that. She would see what it was when the time came.


    Silence fell for a bit. Then Renna remembered something important.


    ¡°Did you hear anything about my brothers?¡± She asked.


    ¡°They were whipped but then let go. They are fine.¡± He responded quietly.


    Renna felt both angry and relieved. At least they were free, but if she ever escaped this place, there was a promise to keep. She spent the time until dinner dreaming up creative ways to torch the castle.


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    Dinner was eaten mostly in silence except for the instructions for tomorrow - breakfast was going to be early and she was to wear something she wouldn¡¯t mind getting dirty. Then they went to bed.


    Despite having slept for nearly 2 days Renna fell asleep fast - full stomach and eased mind let her sleep deeply and relaxingly.


    Morning arrived too early and again rather rudely - he was yelling and shaking her again. But this time she was rested enough to try to punch him even before actually waking up. There was a rather satisfying ¡°Ow!¡±. At that she woke completely.


    ¡°Sorry, it happens without thinking¡­¡± She apologized immediately.


    He looked amused, not angry fortunately so Renna felt able to relax.


    ¡°Get up and dressed, breakfast is already waiting. We need to get started now if we want to be ready by evening.¡± He said and left rubbing his shoulder.


    Renna dragged herself out of her bed and to the wardrobe. Something that she wouldn¡¯t mind getting dirty¡­ She looked at the magical piece of furniture speculatively. So far it had given her what she needed by just closing her eyes and hoping it suits the occasion. She closed her eyes, focused on the description of the item and stuck her hand in it quickly, grabbed something and pulled whatever she had got out again.


    When she opened her eyes she burst out laughing. She was holding the white dress she had arrived in. It did match the description perfectly - she had no desire to spare the offensive garment. So she took off her amulet, set it carefully on the dressing table, and put the dress on. Then, with only a quick look at her reflection in the dressing table mirror she walked out of her room.


    The dragon was already seated and eating. When she arrived he looked up, scanned her dress, raised an eyebrow and asked ¡°Sure, this is the thing you don¡¯t mind getting dirty?¡±


    ¡°Absolutely.¡± Was Renna¡¯s response as she was sitting down to eat too.


    Arion was amused. That punch had hurt a fair bit, but the fire in her was, for the lack of a better word - cute. And when she came out in that white dress showing how much she despised it¡­ She looked pretty in it and her attitude towards the dress made her prettier. He could not deny that he was starting to feel a pull towards the girl. Punches and all. And he would have to fight it¡­ she would be gone too in spring and getting attached just hurt. He shook his head to clear it and commanded Renna to follow. That dress would not be pretty for much longer.


    Renna followed the man out of the parlor area to the big cave up front but instead of crossing it to the exit he directed her to the right, along the curving wall until they reached a smaller door.


    He opened it and asked her to step in. The room stank. Horribly. Like stagnant water and sulfur and methane from something rotting.


    Renna had experienced worse smells on the farm, but it wasn''t far behind the worst of them.


    ¡°What is it?¡± She asked.


    ¡°A bath, but I haven¡¯t cleaned it in a while.¡± He responded while trying to not breathe through his nose. He went around the room lighting some candles. The light revealed a stepped tub cut in rock, half filled with something dark that may have been at some point water, but now was something very sticky and smelly and gross.


    There was a hot-spring running through the back of the room and with some ducts cut in the rock floor and gates, it looked to be set up to fill the tub. In the far corner there seemed to be a well. She assumed the well would provide cold water. The task at hand was now quite clear to Renna.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to clean out the tub?¡±, she asked.


    ¡°Yes, and I¡¯m going to help you, or it will take too long.¡± He responded.


    Renna sighed, tied up her skirt - falling in that muck after getting tangled up was not something she looked forward to - grabbed a pair of buckets that were lined up at the wall and got to work.


    Knee-deep in the muck, filling up the bucket she suddenly felt better.

 Working it out

    Soon they were settled to a rhythm - Renna was filling up the buckets in the tub and Arion was hauling them away to a drain in the back corner. It was laborious work, at first so they had no breath left over for chatting, but quite enough idle time in their mind to be lost in their thoughts.


    At first filling the buckets was fast work - scoop, lift to the edge and grab the next bucket. Much faster than hauling them to the drain two at a time. This left Renna with time to admire the view. And there was quite a lot to admire. Arion had tossed off his shirt because the air was hot and humid. Perfect abs, broad back and muscular arms were glinting in candle light. Renna found ideas about what fun could be had with the beautiful male specimen suddenly stirring in the back of her mind. No man had aroused in her anything but disgust so this was¡­ new. And felt kind of good. But it wouldn¡¯t do to let him get the wrong idea, so Renna did her best to ensure that she wasn¡¯t caught staring.


    As the level of filth went down, Renna¡¯s part of the work got harder - she needed to fill the buckets with a third one, scraping a bucket full up in multiple scoops leaving her no time for enjoying the sights.


    In turn now Arion could have brief pauses with nothing more to do than watch her work. She was wet and filthy from head to toe. She had smears of filth on her face from wiping hair out of the way. The now very grubby greenish brown dress clung to her skin, outlining her stocky curves.


    Her arms and legs were muscular and stout and body shaped like a very squat hourglass. She was stronger than he had known any woman to be for sure. She could hoist a full bucket to the edge of the tub without even straining much. And somehow, against his own usual preference of small, slender women he found the sight arousing. So much so that he had to carefully stand in a way that would hide any signs of excessive interest. Fortunately, she was too busy working to notice anything at all.


    Around mid-day one of the fire ladies brought a tea tray to them - passed it in through the door and left quickly.


    Renna realized this wasn¡¯t not a room they could tolerate. The air was full of steam. Hence also the muck. They would be unable to clean it for him. And if he didn¡¯t do it¡­ She was standing smack in the middle of the consequence. Soon the work continued. By late afternoon all that could be scraped up with a bucket was gone and it was time for the next phase.


    ¡°Stay there!¡± He told Renna, who was now standing about chest deep in the circular tub hole with bench shaped steps in all directions leading out of it. It was just about too wide for her to reach the sides standing in the middle of it.


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    Arion was doing something with the hot spring gates and soon hot water was flowing in the tub. He tossed her a wooden scraper and told her to start scrubbing the bottom. A moment later he hopped in with a bucket as well.


    Now Renna was scrubbing the tub walls while he was bailing dirty water down the overflow drain. The space was limited for both workers and unavoidably there would be accidents. It started with Arion dumping a whole bucket of warm, filthy water on Renna¡¯s chest and face. He had been throwing it and she had stood up unexpectedly. He couldn¡¯t help laughing at her face.


    Renna¡¯s brow furrowed and an evil glint appeared in her eyes. She knew this game quite well. She had played it a lot with her brothers. Next a piece of particularly sticky and gross sludge hit the back of Arion¡¯s head and slid down his back leaving a trail of filth. When he grabbed it and snapped around to look at Renna she was innocently prying filth off the tub. ¡°Oops¡­¡± was all she had to say about it, smirking.


    Arion looked at the handful of muck with a speculating look. Renna grew suspicious.


    When he started coming towards her with an evil grin, Renna squealed and started backing away. Soon there was a very circular chase in the tub with water flying everywhere. Occasionally it would suddenly change direction when there was a change in the role of chaser. Soon both collapsed on the bench step, exhausted and laughing.


    Her dress now had filth not just on the outside, but also inside. Same applied to Arion¡¯s pants. That¡¯s where one puts mud in a mud fight - in other people''s clothes¡­


    ¡°Well, it seems the running took care of most of the scrubbing needed¡­¡± Renna observed finally. They both grabbed a bucket and bailed the last of the most dirty water out.


    Then, they settled down on the benches to wait for it to fill up. They were too dirty to go anywhere as they were anyway. Now there was time to talk.


    Renna just had to ask, ¡°Am I a prisoner?¡±


    Arion¡¯s eyes looked almost sad when he responded, ¡°Yes.¡±


    Renna nodded.


    ¡°Will you kill me?¡± She asked next.


    Arion was silent for a moment¡­ ¡°I don¡¯t intend to, but¡­ I can¡¯t promise to be safe for you either.¡±


    Renna thought about that for a moment. It sort of made sense. There had been 6 girls before her. They aren''t here now¡­ Something happened to them. And someday she would find out what. If not sooner, then when it was happening to her, she would. She shuddered. Her imagination was conjuring up old horrors and mixing them into her future.


    He whispered her name. She looked up.


    ¡°I can only promise you this¡­ I will not rape you. Ever.¡± He said quietly and Renna¡¯s heart skipped a beat.


    It was her captor''s promise. Nothing bound him to it, but his own honor. And yet, it meant something for her. It meant that maybe¡­ this could still work out alright.

 Silent Conversation

    They sat in silence as water was rising slowly soaking their dirty clothes and tired limbs both lost in their own thoughts.


    Renna had liked having something meaningful to do. Arion, though her captor, was not too bad either. He could be fun, if he wanted to. She was not yet entirely adjusted to the idea that he was also the dragon. The magnificent beast who had snacked on her pig was also the man in the tub with him now¡­ the idea felt¡­ intriguing. She wanted to test it out¡­


    ¡°Do you remember eating my pig a week before midsummer?¡± She asked.


    He snorted. ¡°Yes. And I did see you watching too.¡±


    ¡°Weren¡¯t you scared?¡± He wondered.


    Renna thought about it. ¡°I have never felt scared of the dragon really¡­¡± she admitted.


    ¡°I would like to see it again¡­¡± she said thoughtfully, longing making a small appearance in her voice. In some way, the beast was more familiar to her than this man in front of her. She felt closer to it having watched it over the years than Arion, who was¡­ well¡­ a man she did not know that well.


    Arion watched her in the dim candle light and felt something unpleasant and new. He felt envy for the beast who lived in him and was watching the scene as well through his eyes. The beast¡¯s contentment with her implicit trust in it only made it worse. He coveted her trust. He desired to be touched by her the same way as dragon was¡­ without getting a kick in the privates. He was not sure if he deserved that trust, but neither did the beast. Spring was still going to happen¡­ And there might be less regrets if he left things the way they were¡­ Looking at her through half closed eyelids, he was forced to admit¡­ There was no escaping regrets any more. There might be quite a lot of them over things he could have done and missed the chance, if he fought this pull¡­


    The door cracked open and a tray with two glasses of wine slid in. Arion pulled himself out of the water to fetch them.


    Renna could not help but stare at his form that the dripping wet pants contoured. She admittedly had seen him naked before, but it was a bit different feeling now in candle light and knowing him a bit better. Something in her was getting awakened by this man and it was both thrilling and scary. And she was not really sure if she should help it along or fight it.


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    Arion sank back in the tub and handed her both glasses. ¡°Hold mine for a moment, please.¡± And started struggling out of his pants under water.


    Renna got nervous. He stopped for a moment, looked at her pointedly and asked ¡°Remember what I promised?¡±. She nodded. ¡°Then don¡¯t worry, okay. I just won¡¯t get clean if I stay in these mud filled pants. And neither will you in that dress.¡±


    He pulled the pants out of the water and threw them into the overflow drain.


    Then he took both glasses away from Renna and told her it¡¯s her turn. Renna wasn¡¯t sure about this¡­ Sure, it was dark, but still¡­ On the other hand - why not test him¡­ how good was his promise. And it was not like the dress was going to do anything for her, if he wanted to try something.


    ¡°Alright, close your eyes. No peeking. I will need to stand up.¡± She announced.


    She waited for him to close his eyes and stood up on the seat step to remove the dress. The water level was just below her waist and hauling the water logged garment over her head took a while. Arion could not resist sneaking a peek. He regretted it instantly. He had no intention of breaking his promise but damn, was it choking him hard. His nether regions were painfully uncomfortable. Tonight in his bed he would need to do something about it by himself. He was almost relieved when he heard her sink in the water again.


    ¡°You can open your eyes now.¡± she said.


    He passed over the wine glass and took a sip.


    She did the same thoughtfully.


    Renna could not shake a slight disappointment. She hadn¡¯t even caught him peeking. Guess he wasn¡¯t interested in her then and that promise had been easy to give. She should have been relieved. But she wasn¡¯t. And she couldn¡¯t really understand it herself. She definitely did not desire to be ravaged by this man here and now. So why the disappointment¡­ Maybe she just wanted an excuse to kick him again? She found this to be an adequate explanation and relaxed.


    They sat and sipped wine quietly, but in a moment the door opened and a crackly fiery voice told them that there were towels waiting outside the door and that it was time for dinner.


    Arion laughed. ¡°Now it¡¯s your turn to close your eyes and not peek. I''m getting out and sprinting for the door.¡±


    He hardly gave her a moment to react before he stood up and walked away. And of course she peeked.


    The state of his body told her things he had not. A whole silent conversation. He definitely did peek.


    And something in her growled with satisfaction.

 A Solid Promise

    Renna went back to her room wearing just a towel. She needed to dress for dinner. Arion was probably doing the same in his room. The grey dress she had worn last night had disappeared, and she wasn¡¯t feeling that grey any more either. Instead she felt like teasing Arion just a bit more. Time to loot the fancy magic wardrobe again.


    The dress she got was red, form fitting, had an open back and long slit on one side. And it screamed for shoes to go with it. Renna wondered if the wardrobe had any. Only way to know was to try. It did. A pair of red low heeled shoes that matched the dress perfectly were in her hands. She had only seen shoes of this kind on ladies during parties where she had worked as a maid.


    She had difficulties getting in the dress and was still struggling with it when one of the flame ladies came to check on her. Seeing her predicament she entered and helped her to get it finally on. Her touch was hotter than humans would be but not burning and oh so gentle.


    When the dress was on, she led her to the dressing table and brushed out her hair. Then she put her amulet back on and finally extracted a beautiful jeweled hair pin in the shape of a dragon from the drawers of the dressing table to pin back her hair, so it would stay out of the way. Renna observed her from the mirror. There was something familiar about her but she could not place it.


    It was time to go.


    She got up and gave herself a last look in the dressing table mirror. She found what she saw to be nothing like Renna who had been feeding pigs only a few weeks ago. She would have passed for a posh lady. But the biggest change was inside - she was actually trying to look attractive for a man. She tried to shake her head clear and stepped into her pretty shoes. At the door she paused, took a deep breath and stepped out of her room.


    Arion was already seated at the table when she entered, but stood up immediately. He was wearing a white shirt he had not bothered to button up properly and a pair of knee length pants with stockings and shiny leather shoes. He had definitely dressed up. With a hint of tease too, she concluded looking at his exposed chest.


    Going carefully in unaccustomed shoes but still trying to swing her hips a bit like she had seen the fancy ladies do she approached the table, stopped next to her chair and waited. Well, he knew what was expected of him¡­ he had done it once before hadn¡¯t he. It took him a moment to realize, but then he scrambled up to pull out her chair for her. He looked amused.


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    Renna managed to sit down with a straight face, but could not entirely contain the snort of laughter when settled. It escaped despite her attempt to keep it serious. This fancy lady act was too funny. She avoided looking at Arion. She knew that if she took a look at him, she would lose it and laugh herself silly. It was rather hilarious to reconcile the image of a fancy noble across the table from her with the guy whose pants she had stuffed with mud not too long ago. Her ears picking up suppressed snorts suggested that the situation was much the same on the other side of the table.


    They ate, making polite conversation about the weather and the seasons, much like Renna had heard the nobles she had served do. Soon the dinner was over and they were seated by the fire drinking wine and snacking on biscuits. Finally the exhaustion of the day got to Renna. She got up and thanked Arion for the meal, sliding her hand over his arm in passing and noticing with a smile how he tensed up under her touch. Then she headed back to her room, only slightly embarrassed by the swaying way she was trying to walk and not daring to look back over her shoulder whether she had an audience or not.


    Back in her room she looked at the magic wardrobe speculatively again. It must have something¡­ fit to sleep in too, if it was that magical. She struggled out of the fancy dress, stuffed it back into the wardrobe and tried fishing for something more suited for bedtime. The wardrobe didn¡¯t disappoint and provided a long sleeved full length warm nightgown. She pulled it on, but before getting to bed, realized she was still thirsty. There was always a bottle of water and some glasses always available on the dining table. A little dash for the drink in a nightgown should not be an issue really.


    Renna opened the door a bit and peeked out. Nobody was around. The room looked deserted, only residual light from the glowing embers in the fireplace lit it. Dinner was already cleared away and there was indeed a water bottle on the table. Renna went out, poured herself a glass and brought it back to her room. She was back at her door when she thought she heard something - a quiet moaning sound that seemed to be coming from the room next door. Having four brothers she had shared a small house with for all of her life, she knew what he was doing. And it made her happy in a strangest way. She resolved to not tease him any more. His promise seemed to be solid enough, even when pushed.


    Renna slipped in her room, got under the covers and fell asleep fast, but her dreams seemed to be crowded today. He kept appearing in them.

 The Sleeping Beast

    Arion woke early the next morning early to a feeling of hunger. It wasn¡¯t his. The beast was hungry. He would need to feed him today. This made him a bit cross - things between him and Renna were just getting interesting and now he wouldn¡¯t be here for days. Resisting the desire to have fun with her seemed futile - this is why these girls came here in midsummer after all. So he had a chance to show them a good life before¡­ He did not want to think about that. He would pay the price for this indulgence, he knew. He would fight it again, he would lose and then¡­ he would have to mourn. Again. But spring was still far away. And he needed to prepare for the feeding. He got up.


    Renna woke up, dressed rather sensibly and went out. Breakfast was set for one. Arion did not seem to be around. As she ate she could hear sounds behind the big double door at the other end of the room. Somebody seemed to be busy there.


    She finished her breakfast and went to investigate. When she opened the door her jaw dropped. The big cavern beyond was lit with torches. It was higher than she had suspected, with a large dome roof so far above her that it was obscured by mist. The walls were lined with walkways and bookcases filled with books.


    One one side of the room floor was covered with a glittering golden pile. She had heard the stories ¡­ but she had never believed them. Apparently they were true. The dragon had a hoard. She went closer to look at it. Arion appeared from behind it and warned, ¡°The beast really does not like anyone touching his hoard, you know¡­¡± It was true, but he had not growled at her in his mind. And that was strange in itself. His beast was not himself around this girl.


    ¡°I wasn¡¯t going to touch it!¡± Renna retorted.


    ¡°What does it do with it?¡± She asked.


    ¡°The beast sleeps on it of course. It¡¯s his bed¡­¡± he said.


    ¡°Come, let¡¯s sit by the fire. I need to leave soon and I have to talk to you before I do¡­¡±


    ¡°Leave?¡± She asked.


    ¡°It¡¯s only for a short while¡­ but ¡­ Come, I will explain.¡± And he headed off towards the fireplace in the parlor.


    Renna sat down in the armchair, that was now she felt very much hers and prepared to listen.


    ¡°The beast is hungry. I will need to fly out to feed,¡± he said without beating around the bush.


    ¡°But, don¡¯t we eat every day?¡± Renna asked.


    ¡°Indeed, but you know how big my beast is, right? I could never eat enough¡­¡±


    Realization dawned on Renna, ¡°So my pig wasn¡¯t enough?¡±


    Arion chuckled. ¡°It was for a while¡­ but it was already almost a month ago¡­¡±


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    He seemed to withdraw, then laughed out loud and said ¡°The beast wants to tell you that it was a tasty pig. Better than others.¡±


    Renna was suddenly annoyed again and vented it promptly, ¡°Yes, that was supposed to be my roast, not yours! I fed it beer hops for taste and added beer to it¡¯s sop so it would have softer meat. And you just ate it right under my nose! I just got the teasing smell¡­¡±


    Arion laughed for several minutes but then said seriously ¡°This time you are getting nothing, not even a smell. And there is something you need to know.¡±


    He looked at his hands. ¡°I won¡¯t be shifting back for at least 4 days when I come back.¡±


    Renna was surprised. ¡°Why?¡± She asked.


    Arion shrugged, ¡°A whole pig or cow won¡¯t fit in me. The beast will need to digest its food before it can let me come forth again.¡±


    Renna nodded. It made sense.


    ¡°So I will have to live with the beast for a while?¡± She asked.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, it will sleep on its bed up front for the most time and not bother you at all¡±, he assured.


    Renna realized he must think she feared the prospect. It would be only natural. But¡­ she still wasn¡¯t afraid of the beast. She had actually been hoping to see it again but had not dared to ask. Now she would have several days of nothing else. And no man around her. The prospect was inviting, not scary.


    ¡°Alright.¡± She said,


    ¡°And whatever you do, DO NOT touch the hoard. He will cook you and in that shape I don¡¯t have enough control to stop him. I''m serious.¡± he insisted.


    Renna looked at him. He looked genuinely worried. ¡°I promise,¡± she said.


    At that the conversation was at an end and Arion rushed away. Renna followed him out of curiosity. He went to the outer doors but instead of opening the small door he started to unbolt and open the big double doors. It took him some effort to push the heavy gates and Renna decided to pitch in. He threw her one incredulous look when she stepped next to him, but didn¡¯t say anything. The doors were very heavy, so he appreciated the help.


    Then he stripped again and flew away. Renna picked up his clothes and took them back in. He would not need them for a while. No reason to leave them outside.


    She decided to explore the great cavern as there was nothing else to do. She walked up the walkways, looking at everything. The place had reading corners at intervals where you could sit with a book. She looked at a few books as well, but they didn¡¯t have many pictures and she could not read, so books did not offer much entertainment for her.


    Except for one book. It had caught her eye because on its back there was something familiar. It was a depiction very similar to her amulet. She took it out of its shelf and opened the cover. On the front page was another drawing of her amulet and. In its pages she could find a few more drawings but they seemed to be diagrams of something way beyond her comprehension. She would have given anything at that moment to be able to read it.


    She couldn¡¯t bear to put it back. ¡°Maybe Arion will read it for me,¡± she thought and headed back carrying it along.


    Lunch was already cold by the time she arrived at the table. She had stashed the book in her room. It was strange to eat alone. Something seemed to be missing.


    Before she could finish eating there was a commotion in the other room. She couldn¡¯t resist the curiosity and went to peek at the door. Dragon was back and circling on his bed much like a dog would in preparation of laying down. Then he went down in a cascade of noise from the hoard creaking under the heavy animal and finally let off a huff while lowering its gigantic head on the floor. Its eyelids drooped immediately and soon there was loud rhythmic snoring coming from the beast. Renna starred. The beast was ¡­ wonderful. Then she went back to her cold lunch. The beast would be her only company for days. She would have time to see the sleeping beast.

 The Hoard

    Renna had watched the sleeping beast all afternoon, eaten a lonely dinner and then gone to bed. But sleep was eluding her. She wanted to be near the beast. She got up, wrapped her blanket around her and walked out. The great cavern was cold, because the big iron doors were still open. Torches high on the balconies were going out one by one wrapping the cavern slowly in darkness. There was a red glow around the beast that had been hidden by the daylight from outside and torch light from above before.


    She settled into one of the comfortable couches lining the great hall wall. She would be able to watch the beast from here. Soon she fell asleep.


    She woke up shivering with the first morning light and felt watched. The dragon was awake, but had not moved at all. It was looking at her. Renna sat upright and tried to wrap the blanket tighter around her, but it wasn¡¯t helping much. Dragon lifted up its giant head and sniffed the air. Then he sniffed around his hoard occasionally digging into it with its snout. He seemed to be looking for something.


    One of the fire ladies walked out from one of the many doors lining the great cavern with a tea tray. Hot tea was very inviting to Renna. She picked up the mug and let it warm first her hands and then took a sip. It was made of herbs and spices she did not recognize, but it was wonderful in banishing the cold.


    The dragon seemed to have finally found what it had been looking for. Renna did not immediately see what it was because the beast was holding it in its mouth. Unexpectedly the beast extended its neck and dropped it in front of her feet.


    Renna looked down on it while still holding her mug of tea. It was a golden bracelet, shaped like a curled up dragon, with rubies for eyes. It was the prettiest thing she had seen in her life. She still remembered the warning though and was hesitant to pick it up.


    ¡°Do you want me to look at this?¡± She asked the beast.


    The beast nodded and nudged it towards her with its nose.


    ¡°I guess it¡¯s okay for me to look at it if you are giving it to me yourself,¡± she said.


    She put away the tea cup and picked it up. Examining it closely only increased her awe. The dragon bracelet was exquisitely sculpted, every detail clearly visible. Renna suspected it would be worth a small kingdom down there in the world.


    ¡°It¡¯s beautiful!¡± She whispered loudly.


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    When she was done admiring it, she got up and took it back to the hoard. Dragon watched her. When she put it down, he picked it up again and folded its neck around her, almost wrapping himself around her and dropped it at her feet again.


    ¡°You want to give this to me?¡±, she asked.


    Dragon nudged the bracelet closer to her again. She felt that refusing the gift would have offended the beast, so she picked it up and slipped it on her arm. It was easily big enough to slip over her hand but then the bracelet dragon seemed to curl up a little tighter and the bracelet was irremovable on her wrist. It was quite clearly magical too.


    Renna eyed her now permanently decorated wrist and wondered what this gift meant for the beast¡­ And if she maybe had promised a bit more to it by accepting it than she had intended to. It was too late to start thinking about that now she felt and instead smiled at the beast.


    She wanted to thank the beast. She stepped up to its huge head and gave it a hug.


    ¡°Thank you,¡± she whispered, ¡°it''s wonderful¡±


    And then on a whim scratched the beast under its chin. The beast seemed to thoroughly enjoy the scratching. Renna laughed and started exploring various points that animals usually liked scratched. It seemed that the most pleasant spot was on its back at the root of one of its big back spikes. The great beast flopped over and leaned into her hand to get it scratched and its back leg started twitching in the rhythm of Renna¡¯s ministrations. When she stopped he disappointedly nuzzled her hands and then went out to stretch its wings.


    Renna went back in to get dressed. When she returned from her room the breakfast table was set again just for her. She sat down and ate, occasionally glancing at the dragon''s gift on her wrist.


    It was magical. And she felt now bound to the dragon in a way. She was quite sure that the dragon would never lash out at her, not even if she touched the hoard. But she felt equally certain that a door somewhere had closed for her by accepting this. There would be no escape. They were tied together no matter how this ended.


    The dragon returned and went straight back to sleep soon after Renna had finished her breakfast. He woke up again late in the evening and saw Renna exit the human rooms wearing a blanket. An idea formed in its gigantic head. Again he nuzzled around in his pile of treasure until he found a big gilded carpet. He yanked it out from other golden items and laid it on top of the treasures next to himself. Then she nudged Renna over, inviting her to lay down next to him on top of the hoard.


    Renna felt drawn to comply. She did not know why, but this beast''s shape was comforting for her. She climbed up on the pile, leveled it out a bit under the carpet by trampling in circles as it had before laying down and curling her back against the hot glowing side of the dragon she laid down next to him. The dragon curled up around her the same way the bracelet had curled up around her arm.


    Sleep seemed to come easily to her on this pile of gold, with back against the hot dragon. Before sleep took her away, a peculiar thought occurred to Renna - ¡°I am now a part of its hoard!¡± It should have been a scary thought¡­ but it was not. Dragon protects its hoard. She would be safe.

 Bound

    All through the breakfast the next day Renna could hear the dragon digging through its hoard. She assumed it was doing the equivalent of making its bed. At last it seemed satisfied and went to its morning flight.


    Renna¡¯s mind was calm. It had not been this quiet in her head for years. Something about it felt¡­ oddly right. She found herself staring at the bracelet again.


    Renna was not good at doing nothing. She needed to find something to occupy her mind. She went exploring again. There were many doors leading away from the great hall. She tried them one by one. Some were store rooms full of old paintings and knickknacks of all sorts. Others looked like guest bedrooms. Some were locked.


    Then, she came to a door that opened to another large cavern - the kitchen! The fire ladies were busy preparing for lunch. There were six of them. Five looked interchangeably identical - Renna found no way to tell them apart. They looked like flimsy flames weakly filling a human shape. Sixth was different. She was more full of fire, more substantial, almost like a person. Renna realized that this was the only spirit she had heard speaking. She wondered if others were capable of speech at all.


    She couldn¡¯t shake the feeling that there was something familiar about the sixth. A memory just out of reach was moving in the back of her mind¡­ but it wasn¡¯t willing to show itself yet. Renna let it go.


    ¡°Is there something for me to do?¡± She asked.


    Brightest lady looked at her thoughtfully. Then she pointed to the buckets by the wall and the well in the far corner.


    ¡°Fetch water?¡± She asked her with a fire filled voice.


    Renna got to work. There were about a dozen empty buckets to be filled. Two at a time she took them to the well, filled them up and hauled them back to their place by the wall.


    When she was done, there was a trail of spilled water between the buckets and the well. Arriving with the last buckets she found a rag at the start of it. The hint was obvious. Renna started to mop up the trail.


    When she finished, she felt that she had been helpful enough and quickly exited the kitchen before more work materialized.


    Dragon was back and snoring loudly. But something circling its front paw caught her eye. She went closer to investigate. It was a bracelet, very similar to hers. It might even have been identical, if it wasn¡¯t stretched out around the beast''s gigantic paw. So that¡¯s what the beast had been looking for in the morning when it dug through its bed¡­


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    Renna couldn¡¯t shake the feeling that she was in over her head. She was not just simply claimed as possession by this creature¡­ It was more than that. It was complicated. She felt bound to this creature stronger than any rope could tie her.


    Renna sat down on the couch to watch the beast sleep. She sat deep in thought until she was called to lunch. She resumed her exploration in the afternoon.


    Most of the rooms she visited had been much the same - store rooms and bedrooms. But there was one that was different. It was empty. And there was a large mirror standing in the middle of it. But its glass surface did not reflect anything. It remained dark and empty even with her standing right in front of it. There were letters on its frame, but she couldn¡¯t read, so they were of no help.


    She walked around it and then decided to leave. She looked back over her shoulder when stepping out and for a moment, she thought she saw something, someone looking at her from the frame, but it was gone in an instant and the frame was empty again. She decided to not come back to this room again, it was magic and not the nice kind - she felt drained.


    She returned to the big parlor room just in time for dinner, ate in silence and headed for bed. She put on her nightgown and got under the covers. But again sleep would not come. She sighed, got up, stuffed her pillow under her arm and wrapped herself in her blanket. She had missed having a pillow the night before. Then she walked out to the big cavern.


    Dragon was awake and the carpet was laid out for her again. He seemed to have been waiting for her. She went and curled up next to him as if this was an entirely normal thing to do. It did not make sense, but it felt a normal and comfortable place for her to be. She drifted off to sleep.


    Arion watched Renna¡¯s interaction with his beast from the back of his mind. He was incredulous at first. But when she curled up next to the beast wearing his gift he felt ... envy. Jealousy even. She was so comfortable around him, but he had to watch out and not make any sudden movements to avoid scaring her away or getting hurt himself.


    Other girls had been the opposite. They had warmed up to him very fast, but the beast¡­ they wouldn¡¯t even look at it. He wondered if this jealousy was what the beast had felt then, looking at him getting close to the girls but being excluded from company.


    The next morning when the dragon slipped on the mate of the bracelet he had given her, even he could feel the old dragon magic snapping in place between them. He wondered if she knew or maybe guessed what she had done accepting it¡­


    In the dragon world, these signified an engagement. A promise to share life with each other. A bond that may kill the one trying to reject it, if the rejection is not mutual. He was bound to this as much as the beast, they were one after all but he would have stopped the beast if he could. His heart sank thinking of spring. It made it infinitely harder to protect her when spring came. And it was impossibly hard already.


    But spring was far away. It was still summer. There was time. He wanted to have as much of her confidence as the beast did.


    Arion felt able to shift back around noon the next day, but he delayed it¡­ The beast was reluctant to relinquish her so soon and ¡­ her closeness for the night calmed him. One more night like this ¡­ appealed to him as well. They spent the night watching her sleeping form through the beast''s eyes together. Arion could feel the beast''s emotions and they had a softness that had never been there before.

 Making It Work

    They pretended to sleep when she awoke to go to breakfast and shifted right after she was gone. Arion had to sprint naked for his room and it would be better done while she was dressing. Or he could get another kick.


    When Renna left her room she found breakfast set for two. So he was back¡­ She sat down and tried to decide if she was going to ask about the bracelet or not. On one hand, she wanted to know¡­ Yet¡­. It was fine the way it was, it was done, no need to trouble herself with it.


    Arion dressing was debating the same question. Should he tell her, or not. He sensed that she felt no rush to rid herself from his beast, but he was not sure about himself. If she asked to unbind her now¡­ he would have to agree. To make it mutual so she would not hurt. He did not want to do that¡­ the beast would fight him for one thing. So he resolved to not say anything unless she asked. There would be time for it.


    They had a quiet breakfast, but at the end of it Renna had a couple of requests to make.


    ¡°Could you teach me to read?¡± She asked.


    Arion was surprised, ¡°You were not taught as a child?¡±


    ¡°No, Lord Aris thinks knowing how to read is not good for women. Teaching girls is not allowed in his domain.¡± She said.


    ¡°Mother would have taught me regardless if she had known how herself of course¡­¡± she admitted bitterly.


    ¡°Only my brother Aron knows how to read. The priest taught him at my fathers request because he was clearly too weak to be a farmer or a smith like his older brothers and had ideas father believed some book-wisdom would cure.¡± Renna smiled. ¡°He was disappointed - he only got bigger and wilder ideas from reading. He didn¡¯t think it was worth trying with Tom.¡±


    Arion contemplated this for a bit. There was no harm in it. It would fill their days and would let her use the library eventually.


    ¡°Alright, I will teach you, ¡± he said.


    Renna smiled. She had one more thing to ask.


    ¡°I looked around when you were away and found the weaving room. Is it fine if I work there?¡±


    Renna had found the room on the last day. It had a big weaving frame, a drawing table and lots of supplies. She had had a small frame at home and knew how to work it. Doing something with the big one here was an exciting idea for her. It would give her hands and mind something to do.


    Arion looked at her wondering what else she had found. That room was quite far along the great hall. Has she seen the mirror? And more importantly¡­ had she been seen?


    ¡°Yes, you can do whatever you wish there.¡± He said.


    ¡°But¡­ if you looked around, did you go to the room with a big mirror?¡± He asked.


    ¡°Yes, but the mirror was blank. It showed nothing. Not even my reflection. Is it magic?¡± She told him.


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    He was relieved. She wasn¡¯t seen.


    ¡°Yes, it is. Please don¡¯t go there again. It isn¡¯t safe.¡± he insisted.


    ¡°I wasn¡¯t going to. It felt¡­ unpleasant.¡± She assured him.


    ¡°So, when do my lessons start?¡± She asked.


    ¡°Now?¡± Said Arion laughing.


    He led him to the drawing desk in the weaving room.


    ¡°First, we will need to learn the letters.¡± He told her.


    So until lunch Renna struggled with sounds and shapes of the letters. She felt that she was making a little progress.


    After lunch she went back to the weaving room alone to work on an idea of a wall rug she had in her head. She sat herself down at the drawing table and was soon lost in sketches. Time passed quickly. It always did when working.


    When Renna went to her work Arion sighed, went back to his room and looked for a shirt that would completely cover his bracelet. Beast rumbled with disapproval in the back of his mind. He wanted to show it off, but Arion wasn¡¯t ready to share her with anyone yet. Not even his mother.


    Reasonably satisfied with his attire he went to the mirror room, stood in front of the big mirror and waited. Minutes passed without anything happening. Then suddenly an image of an older woman appeared in the mirror.


    ¡°Arion¡± she said with a warm voice ¡°how are you, my child?¡±


    ¡°I''m as good as I can be alone in this world, Mother,¡± he said sadly.


    ¡°But don¡¯t you have company again, child?¡± She asked.


    Arion was surprised - had she seen Renna after all?


    ¡°It is that time of the year is it not?¡± She inquired.


    Arion let out a breath, she had simply guessed.


    ¡°It is, but I meant company of my own kind¡­¡± he responded.


    ¡°Remember, dear, sage said your exile would last for 8 years? It has almost passed.¡± She softly told him.


    Arion bristled. Considering the reason for his exile, this piece of fortune seemed¡­ unlikely to come true. Unless he was to die within a year.


    ¡°Sages say too much and leave even more unsaid. You know this very well, Mother.¡± He retorted.


    His mother looked sad at his words. She loved her son and hoped that by some miracle he would be able to return from this exile was all she had left.


    ¡°Enough about me and my sad fate - what news of home?¡± He asked, trying to change the topic.


    They talked about various small matters for a while.


    Mother eyed her son carefully through the magic glass while they spoke. There was something he was not telling her. She had her suspicions. There had definitely been a girl here the other day and not just any girl. There was a binding bracelet on her wrist. She had seen her for only a moment before closing the connection, but she was sure that was it. And now his son was carefully not exposing his left wrist¡­


    Mother¡¯s heart both rejoiced and worried. If it was indeed true there was hope that he was returning soon¡­ But¡­ Why was he hiding his happiness if it had indeed come his way? She chose to let him tell her when he was ready.


    Soon they parted ways. Neither could tolerate the drain mirror was inflicting on them any longer. This was why he could only go there when he had fed the beast and why it would be dangerous for Renna - it would suck her dry of her life energy if she connected to mother by accident.


    Humans didn¡¯t have enough to support a connection for more than a second. The mirror was a powerful item, but as such things tended to be, it was also dangerous.


    He locked the door behind him.

 Passing Days

    They settled into a routine. Renna¡¯s lessons filled the mornings, in the evening they did what seemed to be a good idea at the time. On most days Renna would work on her rug. But there were also other endeavors.


    Renna had convinced Arion to take her out on the beast to explore. Together they had adjusted his harness so it had a comfortable seat for her where she could strap herself safely in place. The wardrobe had produced for her an odd item made of leather with fur inside when she had asked for something to keep the cold away when they were flying. It looked like a pair of pants and winter fur coat turned inside out and sewn together. It came with matching gloves and a very thick hat. It looked funny but it worked. And if anybody saw it, they would have never guessed there was a woman inside that thing.


    They would pack their dinner and fly to places no human could go. Waterfalls in the mountains were Renna¡¯s favorites. They would settle, eat dinner, talk for hours and fly back. Renna was often sleeping by the time they got back. He would carry her to bed carefully. He suspected she was not always sleeping as soundly as it seemed¡­ but made no remark. He liked being able to carry her not only as a dragon but also as a man.


    Renna¡¯s reading was progressing slowly. By the time winter arriving curbed their excursions to the mountains she could read. Very slowly and laboriously, but could. She would now spend days when Arion was locked inside his beast and afternoons when she felt like taking a break from her rug reading in the library above the great hall. There was one small disappointment for her in learning this skill. The book she had found when she first explored the library remained a mystery - it was not written in her language. The letters were the same but words were not.


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    Arion felt he was progressing too. He could now touch her quite liberally without getting a smack. Things like holding her hand, helping her down or lifting her up had become easy and natural. Seeing him naked no longer bothered her. He had been shifting back and forth for their trips so many times that I guess his appearance had gotten old for her. He kind of missed the blush, but he did not miss the knee so I guess this was for the best. He no longer needed to tutor her on her reading - she just needed practice now - so he had found something else he could teach her.


    Opposite of the weaving room was another big room with a special purpose. It was the ballroom. He had never used it. But it came with the place and magical music was always playing in it. He had been taught to dance by strict private tutors as being able to dance was part of his status. Renna had only seen the fancy ballroom dancing nobles did. She had been intrigued when Arion had proposed it but considered herself incapable of learning.


    In the end, she had agreed to give it a try as she too had grown accustomed to their time together. After a few rather painful lessons, especially for his feet, he had to consider the possibility that she had been right and he had bitten off more than he could handle. But he was not willing to give up his time with her. He realized he would need to get her to let him lead for this to ever work. So he started slow. For days he had her just sway with him to the music until she surrendered her stiff control and let him lead her through a dance. It wasn¡¯t graceful or particularly pretty to watch but they could work on that. And this would be something that would keep them busy for ages.


    Soon, passing of the days had brought them to the Winter Solstice.

 Celebrating Light

    As winter solstice approached Renna started feeling more and more homesick. Celebrating the rebirth of the sun had been a big thing in her family. They would kill a pig, make a feast, eat, drink and play together from when it got dark to when it got light again. Nobody slept on the winter solstice. It was her first celebration away from her family and it was affecting her deeply.


    Arion noticed the change in her and wondered what he could do about it. He could not take her back to see her family - there would be too many questions. But maybe there was something else he could do. He started making preparations, but hid them carefully from Renna until she went to shake her up before dawn on the day before solstice.


    Arion considered it a small win that he escaped without a smack this time. She just looked at him with a sleepy confused gaze.


    ¡°Put on some winter clothes and wear your flying gear. We are going out to celebrate light!¡± He announced and took off before she could ask any questions.


    Renna just relayed his vague instructions to the wardrobe, put on what she got and hoped for the best. The trip was unexpected but not unwelcome - it was infinitely better than pinning here, whatever it was he was taking her to.


    They landed before dawn in a forest clearing near a small post coach inn, stashed the harness and Renna¡¯s flying gear in a convenient cache hole that told Renna he had been here before and walked down to the inn just in time to board the post coach for the city. It did have a name officially, but Renna could never remember it. It was just the City, as the only big settlement in the area it needed no other designation. Posh people lived in the city. Traders lived in the city. Artists and bards lived in the city. Criminals lived in the city as well... She had heard rumors of it, but had never seen it.


    When it came into view, Renna could only stare. Lord Aris¡¯s castle was a hovel compared to the turreted fortified inner city towering over merchant quarters and finally slums. It did not seem that big at first but as they approached and pieces of it disappeared behind buildings never to be seen again she did finally grasp its enormity.


    They came to a halt at a posh looking inn near the city center and soon the innkeeper was directing them to their rooms. Their presence raised no questions for the innkeeper - every year the city was flooded with country nobles wishing to experience the light celebration in the city. Sure, their attire was a bit old-fashioned and plain, but he had paid in advance in solid gold and this was all the innkeeper cared about.


    After getting settled they headed out to see the sights and find lunch. They found themselves soon at a busy market where merchants of all kinds hawking their wares. Renna had never been to a market this big or this busy. They got themselves some meat skewers to eat on the go and spent hours browsing the wonderful wares. Arion had insisted on buying her a beautiful cape with wings embroidered on it and a hood to match it. She now looked very much like a city lady.


    When they grew weary of the market they found themselves a table at an inn near the town square and ordered dinner. It was delicious and for a change contained things that were neither baked nor roasted. They were nearly finished when a young bard started singing at the other end of the hall.


    Renna¡¯s head snapped up. She knew both the song and the voice. It was Tom. She was torn. She wanted to go to him but she had no idea how Arion would react. She stayed still, listening.


    Arion had quietly watched her reaction. They were not at this inn by accident.


    Soon the bard started walking around the room, singing at tables and jesting with guests. When he arrived at their table Arion politely asked the bard to keep his companion company while he went to get drinks and hoped he would stay with them for a beer. Then he walked away.


    Tom sat down with the city lady left in his care and tried to think of a song to entertain her but the song died on his lips when she pushed off her hood. The last person he had expected to meet today was sitting in front of him - his beloved sister whom a dragon had carried away so many months ago.


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    She looked¡­ older but not just in days. Her eyes were heavy with knowledge. She looked unharmed.


    ¡°Ren¡­¡± he whispered.


    ¡°Tom¡­¡± she responded. It was her, not just someone like her.


    Tom reached for her hands and took them in his own. ¡°Your hands have grown soft¡­¡± he noted.


    ¡°Are you alright Renna? Why haven¡¯t you come home if you live?¡± He asked.


    ¡°I am still a prisoner, Tom. Not at liberty to go where I wish¡­¡± she said softly.


    ¡°Is that man keeping you prisoner?¡± Tom demanded.


    ¡°I will fight him and free you!¡± he offered.


    ¡°He is, but it¡¯s complicated Tom. Please don¡¯t fight him¡­¡± Renna said.


    ¡°Is he kind to you? Not hurting you?¡± Tom had to know.


    Renna knew what he was asking about and smiled. ¡°He has not touched me against my will, Tom. You need not worry. He promised he would not¡­¡±


    Arion arrived back with the beers and took a seat next to Renna.


    ¡°Well, am I going to get introduced, since you two clearly know each other,¡± he asked amused.


    ¡°Arion, this is my brother Tom, ¡± Renna said. ¡°Tom, this is Arion,¡± Then she turned to Arion again with a glare and gave him a playful smack on the shoulder saying ¡°but I suspect it''s no coincidence we met here. Some old snake has been scheming!¡±


    Arion made a dramatic impersonation of an innocent man unjustly accused for a moment to make Renna laugh and then turned to Tom with a serious face. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t tell too many people that she is still alive. It benefits nobody.¡± He paused for a moment. ¡°And they would not believe you anyway,¡± he said with a laugh.


    Tom conceded - the former was probably true. There were very few people who he intended to tell. All of whom were in fact likely to believe him.


    He nodded to Arion. Then he turned to Renna.


    ¡°You need to go to see our father as soon as you can, Renna. There is something he wants to tell you about mothers family.¡± He said.


    ¡°Take him with you, he might find it interesting.¡± He added eyeing Arion.


    Now it was Arion¡¯s turn to be surprised. How much did this young bard actually know or guess?


    The conversation turned to lighter topics and the young bard took them to see all of the joys of the light festival in the big city. In the dawn light in front of their lodgings Renna was saying goodbye to her brother. Tom was holding her hands.


    ¡°Last chance, Ren. Run away with me?¡±, he asked.


    Renna looked at him with a hint of sadness, ¡°I can¡¯t¡­ I am his prisoner.¡±


    Tom sought her eyes and then said, ¡°I see no rope or chain on you and the man is giving us plenty of space. It seems sister, that you are only bound at this very moment by your heart¡­¡±


    Tom had not missed the identical bracelet she wore to one on the man''s wrist. Nor had he missed the way she leaned into him for support when pushed in the crowd or how she did not seem to fear his touch at all. She was trusting him.


    He said last good-bye to Renna and stopped at Arion.


    ¡°Break her heart and we will hunt you down and skin your scaly hide, dragon.¡± He said quietly so only Arion could hear. Then he nodded and disappeared to the crowd.


    Renna came to him and asked what Tom had said.


    ¡°Nothing much,¡± he replied, ¡°Usual brother things.¡±


    Renna knew what that meant. Protective brothers could be embarrassing sometimes.


    Arion did wonder about the nature of the threat. There was a secret in this family and her father seemed to want to finally share it with her that would be interesting to him. But it would not be that easy to arrange a visit for her back home. And spring was not that far away¡­ Maybe this is what the seer had seen - her brothers killing him for what he had done to her. He sighed¡­ There was still time.


    They retired to their rooms, slept the day away and headed back to their mountain cave at night.


    When they had finally arrived and were parting for their rooms, Renna stopped him, gave him a quick kiss on his cheek, whispered her thanks and ran to her room. He stood there quite a while thunderstruck.


    Finally he reached up his hand, touched the affected cheek, shook his head and went to bed.

 Getting Help

    Soon after the solstice Renna came to a decision. She would ask Arion¡¯s help with reading the amulet book. The next night when they were sitting by the fireplace with their wine glasses she asked him to wait a moment and brought out the book to show him.


    He was surprised.


    ¡°Where did you find this?¡± He asked.


    ¡°In the library, a long time ago.¡± She said, ¡°I couldn¡¯t read it then. Well I still can¡¯t, I don¡¯t know the language, but then I hoped I could learn.¡± she explained.


    ¡°It has a picture of my amulet on it¡­ It might be important.¡± she continued imploringly.


    Arion took a look. The book was in old draconic, a dead language only used by scholars of dragon magic.


    He shook his head and explained ¡°I can¡¯t read it either. It¡¯s a language that only scholars of my kind learn¡­¡±


    He fell deep in thought.


    ¡°There is someone that might help us¡­¡± he said finally, ¡°but you two have not met yet¡­¡±


    Renna was intrigued. Was there more of his kind around?


    ¡°I will take the beast out to hunt tomorrow and when the sleep is over we will try to consult this person,¡± he said with a smile.


    ¡°She will be pleased to meet you, I suspect,¡± he added.


    She? Renna could not suppress a small twinge of jealousy.


    ¡°Who is she?¡± She had to ask.


    ¡°My mother,¡± he replied quietly.


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    Renna was taken aback.


    It was little bit less than a week later when Arion returned and was ready to face his mother. They went to the door of the room with the dangerous mirror. Renna repeated in her head all of the instructions on how to deal with the mirror. Then he made her repeat them to him again to make sure she understood.


    She was under no circumstance to let go of his hand. If she felt tired she would need to lean into him and close her eyes. Make her shape completely one with him. Then the mirror would draw from him and not from her. And not let go.


    Then he unlocked the door.


    Holding hands they went to stand in front of the mirror.


    For a while, nothing happened.


    Then, an older woman stepped into the frame. She looked similar enough to Arion to be his mother indeed. She was smiling.


    ¡°So you finally decided to share her with me, child.¡± She said kindly. ¡°Won''t you introduce us, Arion¡±, she asked.


    ¡°Renna, this is my mother Amelie Darkwind.¡± He said.


    The woman in the mirror nodded her head in greeting.


    ¡°Mother, this is Renna Johansdaughter and there is a mystery about her we would like your help solving.¡±


    Renna curtsied when he introduced her and then passed him the book she had been holding.


    ¡°Renna came to me with an amulet imbued with dragon magic, mother. It¡¯s connected to her blood. It¡¯s an artifact of her family. When she came here she found this book that seems to describe her amulet, but neither of us can read it, it¡¯s in old draconic and seems to be quite technical.¡± He explained quickly.


    ¡°Please hold the book up to the mirror. There should be a copy of it in my library, I will find it and try to help you.¡± She said,


    He did so and she studied the cover carefully.


    ¡°The mirror is draining me for two mother, we have to go¡­¡± he said soon after.


    ¡°Go, next month I may have answers for you,¡± she said.


    ¡°Renna, take care of my son,¡± she said as parting message.


    Then the mirror went blank and they left the room quickly.


    On the other side of the bridge the old woman smiled. She was convinced now that the seers had predicted correctly and his son would return. But she felt that for that outcome it was essential to find out all she could about the girl''s amulet. Fate would run its course anyway, but it can save a lot of heartache to know why. She left to look for the book.

 Heat

    Time flew by. Soon a month had passed and they prepared to hear news from Arion¡¯s mother. The connection had been brief - she knew that the amulet was a seal of some sort, but it was very advanced magic so she had no idea what it sealed. She did caution them to make sure that Renna was not parted from it under any circumstance. And at that she had been pointedly looking at Arion. Arion had felt that he got the hint as to what circumstance in particular.


    Their closeness had only increased and their exploration trips resumed with new vigor when the weather got warmer. The spring equinox was fast approaching and ¡­ he was getting scared, whereas she seemed to have lost the last of her fears. One night he had been sitting in his armchair by the fire when she had stomped in upset and curled up in his lap. Apparently she did not like the ending of the book she had just read. He had held her quietly in his arms and felt¡­ much like his dragon had already many months ago - in love. He had kissed her then and she had kissed him back.


    Renna had actually given up resisting him at the solstice. Tom¡¯s words had a deep truth in them. She was bound by her heart to both beast and man. Simple as that. The rest just¡­ happened. Somehow. But as days grew warmer and longer, he seemed to grow colder somehow. Trying to avoid being around her. Trying ¡­ to run away? Renna was confused. She wanted to ask¡­ but then he went to his sleep and the beast had no answers for her. The beast still wanted her company. Still needed her near.


    When Arion shifted back he felt the heat rising¡­ and panicked. ¡°Goddess, please not yet¡±, he pleaded with someone who was not really listening. He could still resist it. He could fight it. He would need to get her safe¡­ and the only way to do that was to get as far away from her as possible. But the beast was not having it. He was refusing to come forth.


    Renna came to look for her, but he screamed at her to stay away. To go and hide and hope he does not find her. Renna was startled and hid in her room. But she could not stay there. The bracelet on her arm constricted painfully. Soon a constant pulsing pain was emanating from it. She needed to go find her mate. She looked out of her door.


    The big parlor room was empty. She crossed it for the great hall entrance and peeked out. The great hall doors were open and she could see him standing on the ledge still naked debating something with himself. There was a red haze around him.


    She approached.


    ¡°Please stay away¡­¡±, he pleaded.


    ¡°Remember when I told you that I may not always be safe for you?¡± He whispered.


    ¡°Yes.¡± She replied.


    ¡°This time is now. Dragons'' heat is not something I can control.¡± He said with nearly a whimper.


    ¡°I¡­¡± she started¡­


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    ¡°Please¡­ Go¡­ I can¡¯t lose you too¡­¡±


    ¡°Is this what happened to the other girls?¡± She asked surprised.


    ¡°Yes. Talk to Margarite. Now, please - go in and close the doors! Bolt them! Do not let me in!¡± He screamed.


    Renna left trying to make sense of it. Heat did make sense to a degree. Spring was mating season for beasts¡­ it could have been so for him too. But Margarite¡­ The other girls were gone, weren¡¯t they?


    She was bolting the heavy doors in panic when the memory that had stirred when she had looked at the fire ladies in the kitchen came up to say hello. There were 6 of them. And the most solid one looked like Margarite!


    As soon as the door closed, pain in her arm returned. She did her best to ignore it and rushed towards the kitchen. Margarite was here, busy as usual.


    ¡°Margarite!,¡± she called out to her.


    The callee looked up sharply and came to her.


    ¡°Margarite, please tell me what is going on?¡±, she pleaded.


    ¡°Why are you here, and not with him?¡± Margarite demanded.


    ¡°He doesn''t want me near him,¡± she sobbed. ¡°He told me to lock him out and not let him in no matter what¡­¡±


    ¡°He will die then¡­¡± Margarite whispered, ¡°and our sacrifice would be wasted!¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t you love him?¡± She demanded with her fire filled voice.


    Renna was taken aback by the question. Of course she did¡­


    ¡°He is dying?¡± She asked.


    ¡°Yes. Dragons'' heat is a terrible thing. Unless he mates with someone soon, he will die. And the only person around for that right now is you.¡± Margarite said.


    She knew this to be the truth. The pain emanating from her bracelet told her so. It was growing worse by the minute.


    Renna wiped away her tears. She knew her choices now. Either to let him die or to submit to the heat and become like them - only a bit more substantial than a ghost. A memory of who she was. It wasn¡¯t that hard of a choice. She had let go of her life already in midsummer.


    She got up and unbolted the small door. He was still standing at the edge of the cliff. When she emerged he turned around and faced her. His face was grave.


    ¡°Did you talk to Margarite?¡± He asked.


    ¡°Yes,¡± she said simply. ¡°I know what my options are.¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t let this happen to you¡­¡± he said.


    ¡°And I can¡¯t let you die¡­¡± she responded.


    ¡°Then I will give you no choice.¡± And he jumped off the ledge.


    The beast could not let him crash and so he transformed and flew to the nearest peak screaming in anger and agony at the man who would not let him go to Renna. Renna could not bear to watch his pain. She reached for him. And slipped. The world fell away.


    Suddenly a claw closed around her waist pulling her up so suddenly that she found herself unable to breathe for a moment. Then¡­ she was placed gently in front of their door and the beast shrank to a shivering man now totally engulfed in flames.


    She walked up to him and said, ¡°I choose to walk into fire¡± She took his hand and led him inside.

 Into the Fire

    Renna led them straight to her room. She had never been in his room and she was not that adventurous tonight. In the dark room she could see the flames surrounding him clearly, but they seemed to be much like the fire ladies - warm and ethereal. He was still shivering, still fighting it.


    Renna knew what she could do about that. She kissed him. At first there was barely a reaction. Then a bit more¡­ and then as if the ice had broken he claimed her lips violently. His arms came around her and held her inescapably. Renna knew he would not be able to stop now ¡­ but she wouldn¡¯t want him to anyway. The flames engulfing him were now spreading to her, consuming her.


    The heat¡­ was intense. It was pure concentrated lust. And it infected her head to toe. She wanted him close to her. So close that the boundary between them would disappear and they would merge into one.


    Arion had lost yet again a fight against this flame. He did not know how he was going to survive waking up alone when it was over, but it was too late now¡­ the woman in front of her needed his full attention. And she was going to get it. All of it¡­ many times until the flame had burned itself out.


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    But there was the damned cloth in the way. He ripped it apart. They were both naked now. His lips slid down her neck and to one of her nipples. He gave the hard nub his full attention and then moved on to the other. She moaned in pleasure for a moment, but then pushed him back on her bed and returned the favor. Her lips were busy all over his upper body and her hand was stroking him aggressively. His heat intensified by the way she had taken the lead.


    This was not the dance floor. He very much would enjoy struggling with her for dominance. He grabbed close and rolled them over pinning her under him. Holding her arms in place he ravished her nipples and neck with his mouth again getting ready to impair her. But she had a different idea. He had forgotten how strong she was. He found himself pinned under her again suddenly. And she was getting ready to enjoy him most thoroughly and on her terms. Slowly she lowered herself onto his cock and then picked up the pace. He was guiding and assisting her hips in sliding along his whole length faster and faster until they were both satisfied. But the heat was not over yet. Over and over again they would satisfy each other, losing track of time and space.


    Finally they fell into exhausted sleep and the flames of the heat flickered out.

 Hello

    Renna woke up sore. All over sore. Somehow she had not expected soreness to be part of fire elementals existence. She opened her eyes and lifted a hand in front of her face. It was still a boring old hand. The bracelet was still in place too. But something had definitely changed. She felt strange, as if some wall deep in her had crumbled.


    She felt hot¡­ Some cool air would be nice.


    She got up and walked quietly outside. The cool breeze on her bare skin was wonderful. Something surfaced from deep within her to enjoy it too¡­ There was a sound, like an egg cracking and a beast from the depths of her mind stepped forth onto the spring air. For a moment there was pain¡­ and then she looked at the world through the multifaceted eyes of a dragon. Dark blue gigantic dragon.


    She panicked and rushed to push the creature back¡­ it yielded crumbling - she had only just experienced the world in person and now she was taking it back already. ¡°Later, more¡±, she promised to her in her mind. The beast calmed down.


    Suddenly a pain radiated from her bracelet.


    She rushed back in to find Arion hugging her pillow and crying in despair. She slid back in bed next to him and hugged him.


    ¡°Shh¡­ I''m still here, see?¡± She called out to him.


    He stopped even breathing for a moment. Then slowly opened his eyes.


    ¡°I''ve lost my mind, haven¡¯t I?¡± He asked her.


    ¡°If you think that now, you won¡¯t believe what I have to show for you,¡± she laughed.


    ¡°If I¡¯m crazy, I might as well enjoy my delusions¡± he mused and started kissing her passionately.


    Renna relaxed into his passion willingly this time and let him lead. Getting eaten by a dragon wasn''t that bad after all.


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    Bit later Arion was scanning her flushed face trying to commit it to memory when he noticed something.


    ¡°Renna, your amulet has broken!¡± He exclaimed.


    Renna lifted it to her eyes. Indeed, the ivory egg had cracked open. It was still beautiful in a way¡­ but it was no longer magical. She could feel it. It was just an ornament.


    She wondered if the beast emerging in her mind had something to do with the egg. In the back of her mind the beast''s emotions told her that it was indeed the case. But she had no words to explain. She would need to find the truth herself.


    This reminded her - time to show Arion. She took his hand, told him to not bother with clothes and dragged him outside. He left him standing at the door and backed up as far as she dared to go. He seemed quite worried that she might fall again. That was no longer a concern. She called forth the beast.


    She was big. She did not know it, but among dragon kind the females were usually bigger than males. His mouth was open.


    Then he closed it and said ¡°Oh¡­ Hello!¡±.


    She could not hold in a snort. There was a small burst of fire that landed uncomfortably close to his toes. He jumped back in alarm and wagged his finger at her. She quickly transformed back and rushed to apologize.


    ¡°Alright, alright,¡± he said, ¡°just watch it okay!¡±


    Then he pondered a bit. ¡°Has she eaten?¡± he asked.


    ¡°No,¡± said Renna. ¡°She just awakened this morning.¡±


    ¡°You should not try to fly with her until she is well fed and rested and you have been taught how.¡± He cautioned. ¡°She does not have the energy for it. And you lack the skills.¡±


    ¡°But how am I supposed to feed her, if I can¡¯t fly to hunt!¡± She pouted.


    ¡°That¡¯s what you have a mate for silly!¡± He said kissing her. ¡°Let''s first eat human breakfast and then see what we can do for that beast of yours.¡±


    They went back in.


    Afterwards Arion flew away to hunt for her. His mind was a buzz. First things first but then they would need to talk to mother¡­ and her father. He had to know what was going on. His beast had other concerns. His mate was beautifully huge¡­ and never fed. One pig would not do it for her. He had to focus on his hunt and bring her plenty of nourishment today to win her affection.

 The Beasts Feast

    Renna sat with her blanket around her in the big doorway enjoying the spring sun and waiting. He had asked her to wait in human form to conserve energy, but the beast was restless to be out. Soon, she told her over and over again.


    Renna felt like she had been just born - the world was full of wonder. Then she realized it was her beast that was seeing the world for the first time and what she felt they shared at a level below words. She may be a giant beast, but she was also a newborn and needed protection.


    Renna was so very happy they weren¡¯t alone and so was the beast. Renna could feel her approving sentiment towards the male she had only seen for a moment before he flew away and did not know yet. It reminded her very much the way she had looked at Arion last summer - attractive, but still a stranger.


    Her wait was not too long. Arion¡¯s beast returned carrying half a dozen juicy deer bucks. He laid them on the ground near the edge of the ledge and flew away to watch from a nearby peak. Renna had not really perceived the dragon''s hunger before, but now at the sight of food it became overwhelming. The beast wanted out now. She let her come forth and the dark blue beast rushed to its meal.


    She gobbled down three whole bucks before the hunger was no longer painfully strong and she could look around. She could perceive another hunger, not hers. The male sitting at a nearby peak was hungry too¡­ She looked at the remaining food thoughtfully. The male had fed her first¡­ there was enough for two. She backed away from the food to make room for him to come feast too. She had to back half her body into the great hall to make enough space. She called for the male¡­ It sounded like a loud longing song. Renna was surprised. She had never heard Arion¡¯s beast make a sound. She didn¡¯t even know they could.


    The red dragon approached, extracted a buck from the pile, laid it down carefully between them and gently roasted it from both sides until a wonderful smell of cooked meat was emanating from it. The female was drooling at the scent¡­ This was a skilled male. With slight disappointment she watched the male consume the delicious smelling carcass and resume preparing the remaining two bucks. She still felt the slight twinge of hunger, but ¡­ she was not rude enough to take back what she had already given away.


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    The male had noticed however. He wolfed down the smaller of the two deliciously cooked bucks, picked up the remaining one in its jaws and came over to her offering her to take a bite from his mouth. The beast considered for a moment to refuse the pushy male, but it was smelling heavenly¡­ and she definitely wanted to taste it. This male had hunted for her¡­ It was maybe only fair to amuse him a little.


    She carefully took a bite. It was much better than raw! The male was pleased. He placed the whole remaining buck at her feet and backed away. He felt rather full with two and the female seemed to appreciate one more.


    Instead of hogging it down she ate this one slowly, trying to savor the taste. The male watched with satisfaction. When she finished, she felt¡­ sleepy. She turned around at the door and headed in. On the floor of the left side of the room, there was the male¡¯s hoard. It was beautiful and rich and gleaming. She felt bad for not having anything at all. She turned to the empty floor on the other side of the hall and tried to make herself comfortable.


    The male entered, looked at her thoughtfully and then went to work spreading its hoard. Finally he found a tiny gilded carpet and put it down in the middle of it and turned to her as if expecting something. The beast was confused. Renna however in the back of her mind knew what this was about - he had not slept alone for a while and was not going to start now. She nudged the beast forward trying to feel what the male was expecting. Hesitantly she got up and went to his side of the room. The male nuzzled her affectionately trying to nudge her to the center of his now much thinner, but wider pile of gold. She wasn¡¯t having it. He would not fit, if she occupied the center. So she circled him a few times and then laid down leaving just about male sized gap in the middle.


    The male decided to accept it and curled up in there. Soon there were two snoring beasts.

 The Letter

    Arion woke up first. It had been a long sleep - almost seven days. He had gone on his morning flights but the blue beast had not stirred at all. He wondered how they would approach the business of flying¡­ Did this beast know how to fly? Or would it need to learn? Renna would need to learn at least like he had. So many questions.


    He wanted to talk to mother, but he was hesitant to do this without Renna. So he busied himself arranging a meeting with Renna¡¯s father instead. It was tricky if he did not want to expose Renna to people who might recognize her. And it was even trickier considering her uncertain abilities controlling and working with her beast. It was very dangerous to take her out to the world not knowing if she could contain the beast - a dragon unable to fly suddenly transforming in an unsafe place would be dead.


    He was worried. Going back to Lord Aris¡¯s domain was not an option. He would need to contact him and arrange a meeting somewhere safe. Considering that Renna¡¯s father did not read¡­ It was pretty tricky. But eventually, he figured out a plan and that involved writing to Aron. His whereabouts were quite easy to guess and he did read. But how to approach it, so it would not arouse suspicion, and yet be believable¡­


    <blockquote>


    Sir,


    We have not met, but I am writing to you with regards to my bride and your sister. She desires to meet her father but circumstances surrounding her departure, as you are surely aware, do not allow her to return home safely. If you would be able to get word to your father through your contacts back home requesting him to visit you at the monastery and subsequently inform us of the time of his stay we might be able to organize a visit. Please address your response to Black Oak Inn, West Landfall.


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    Best wishes,


    Arion Darkwind


    P.S I presume you have been in contact with your brother Tom already, whom we met visiting the city during the light celebration. If you have not and have doubts about the sincerity of this letter, please seek him out. He was working in the city, at Red Mare Inn when we met.


    </blockquote>


    Arion read the letter again. Then he folded it up, sealed it and addressed it to Aron Johanson, East City Monastery.


    In the wrong hands it meant nothing¡­ But he hoped Aron would understand the deeper implications and contact his father without betraying too much to the priest that would need to read his letter to their father.


    He looked at Renna¡¯s beast - it was still fast asleep. He resolved to take a quick flight to the inn by the forest and post the letter. When he returned, she had not woken yet, but he could see signs of restlessness in her sleep. Her eyes were moving under the heavy lids. He let his beast curl up to her and went to sleep. Quite some charmer his beast, he had to admit.

 Mother knows

    The next morning Renna felt ready to come forth. Beast whined - it wanted to try flying. Renna did too, but she suspected that there would be something more required than jumping off a cliff and hoping for the best. She assured the beast that the male would soon teach them how to fly and if he wasn¡¯t, they would just try it out themselves. The beast agreed to withdraw.


    Arion had already woken. She was not sure if he had gone out to fly or was having breakfast, but she was hungry and headed back in. First order of business was some clothes. When she got to her bedroom door she noticed that it had merged into one double-door room with Arion¡¯s next to it. When she opened it, behind it was one big room that looked as if the wall between rooms had shifted into a cavern wall and the beds had merged in the middle. She had always suspected that the whole cavern was somehow magical and this feat of redecoration definitely proved it.


    Her magical wardrobe was still there too, tho now in the furthest wall. She walked up to it and pulled out a dress. It was dark blue, almost black and sparkly, exactly like her beast. She put it on happily, slipped her feet in a pair of slippers and went out to find breakfast.


    Margarite was setting the table. Renna felt hesitant approaching. There was a twinge of guilt - she was still here¡­ Margarite greeted her with a nod and resumed her work.


    ¡°Margarite¡­¡± she started not knowing how to formulate the question or even what it was she wanted to ask.


    ¡°Yes, my Lady?¡± She said looking up from her work.


    ¡°I''m sorry¡­¡± Renna whispered.


    Margarite looked at her sharply. ¡°Don¡¯t be. You saved him. Not just for this spring, but forever.¡± she said and resumed her work.


    ¡°If there is anything I can do for you and the others¡­ Please tell me.¡±, she implored.


    Margarite smiled. ¡°I will think about it.¡± She said.


    Moments later Arion strode in, crashed in his chair, greeted her with a small kiss and dug into breakfast without mercy.


    ¡°Eat up, ¡± he said, ¡°We will need to face the mirror today. I hope my mother has answers¡­¡±


    Renna did not need to be prompted twice, she was already quite hungry. With two hungry dragons at the table, soon there was nothing left.


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    After breakfast they headed to the mirror room.


    ¡°It¡¯s not my usual time to call, Mother may not appear fast,¡± he explained as they approached the door. ¡°And please - do not let go of my hand. Your dragon will support you but handling the mirror is¡­ a skill. One I learnt holding my mother¡¯s hand for many years¡­¡± he implored.


    To Arion¡¯s surprise Mother appeared instantly, as if she had been waiting for him. Her face was worried.


    ¡°Arion, you are safe!¡± she exclaimed.


    Then her eyes fell on Renna and stopped at the cracked amulet on her neck.


    She let out a sigh of relief, ¡°I guess you already know what that amulet was sealing, daughter¡±, she said with a hint of amusement.


    She turned to Arion, ¡°Is she a magnificent beast, dear? I can¡¯t wait to meet her when you return¡­¡±


    Renna was startled. Return¡­ where? Arion squeezed her hand.


    ¡°You seem to know more than we do, Mother¡­ Perhaps you will tell us too?¡± He asked.


    ¡°That seal is a very complicated piece of magic. It was made for one very specific dragon. Long time ago there was a dragon scholar whose daughter was aging and growing in power but had not yet found her mate. She became¡­ unstable. Like you. So he made this amulet to seal her dragon in her, rendering her mortal and sent her to the realm you are now so that the suppressed magic would keep the seal intact and the dragon in her in a dormant state. This was a thousand years ago and the scholar himself has been lost to us for centuries. It was presumed that she died in this realm long ago. It stands to reason that Renna is her direct descendant. And the dragon who had been sealed in her ancestor is now reborn in her.¡±


    ¡°But why did the seal break now?¡± Asked Renna.


    ¡°Can¡¯t you guess, daughter? The seal was never made to last forever, only until the dragon spirit found its mate.¡± She told her.


    And looking at her son asked ¡°Have you told her yet, what that means?¡±


    Arion shook his head.


    ¡°You have lots of explaining to do then,¡± she said.


    ¡°Mother, you said the dragon spirit is old, but Renna says she remembers nothing. She is a newborn beast¡­¡± Arion changed the subject swiftly. Mirror time was limited.


    ¡°She might remember some day¡­Or she might not. She¡¯s been dormant in human bodies for longer you have lived, son.¡± Mother answered.


    ¡°You will need to teach her how to be a dragon, the same way I taught you when your beast awakened. Some things she will learn fast as if remembering¡­ others might come slower if she never learned them in the past.¡± She explained.


    ¡°But when you return¡­ There is something that will need to be discussed at council - her inheritance.¡±


    Renna was confused. Inheritance? But the mirror time was almost spent. They had to go.


    Renna had some questions and she would ask them as soon as they were out of the mirror room.

 Balance of souls

    They returned to their seats by the fire to talk.


    ¡°Arion, what did she mean about mates?¡± Renna had to ask.


    ¡°Every dragon has a destined mate. A counterbalance soul.¡± Arion explained.


    ¡°A dragon¡¯s soul gets¡­ heavier, more powerful as it ages. It needs its mate to balance it or the balance of the world is disturbed. Think of scales - if you put weight on only one side of them, it will tip over eventually. An old dragon who has never met its mate is¡­ a dangerous thing. In this world the effects of it are ¡­ subdued. This world is hostile to magic. But even here¡­ I was dangerous.¡± he told her quietly.


    Renna knew he was thinking about the other girls. Compassion stirred in her.


    ¡°So me and my beast are mates to you and your beast? A counterbalance to you?¡± She asked.


    He nodded.


    ¡°It does not happen automatically with dragons, not all the way anyway, at first there is just the recognition that the other is your mate. It seems my beast knew long before the possibility even dawned on me.¡± He said, eyeing his bracelet thoughtfully.


    ¡°You will need to learn dragon magic to be able to bind me properly. Over time¡­ our souls would fuse together removing the imbalance as such.¡± Looking thoughtfully at Renna.


    ¡°It¡¯s both a blessing and a curse.¡± He continued.


    ¡°If a dragon of a mated pair that has not fused yet dies, the other becomes unstable¡­ if left free, they would wreak havoc, destruction¡­ So they are hunted and killed by their own kind.¡± His face was filled with sadness.


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    ¡°But if a dragon of a fused pair dies, half of both souls are lost and the one left can live for a while for two at the balance¡­¡± he sighed. ¡°They usually won¡¯t stay for long and soon leave this life to look for the missing half.¡±


    ¡°Where is your mother¡¯s mate? Your father?¡± She had to ask.


    ¡°He was lost almost a century ago. They had been together for a millennia. She has stayed for my sake, I believe.¡±


    His voice was very quiet now and Renna regretted asking.


    So she opted for a change of topic. ¡°What did she mean by inheritance!?¡±


    Arion looked at her thoughtfully. ¡°You must understand, with our long lifespans, we are seldom blessed with children by the goddess. We honor our blood lines and inheritances greatly. The woman who was banished to this world was an old dragon with assets of her own and considering her father has passed too¡­ There will be a title and property and few other things that you are entitled to in my realm.¡±


    Renna didn¡¯t believe there would be anything of value left after all this time and dismissed it.


    But mention of his return bought her straight to the next thorny topic.


    ¡°What did she mean by returning!? Will you be going away and leaving me here?¡± She asked cautiously.


    He looked at her with love in his eyes. ¡°I''m not going anywhere without you, so if you refuse to come with me to my world, I will stay here with you. But¡­ now it is possible for me to return. I have found my balance with you.¡±


    Renna felt worried ¡°When do we need to go?¡±


    ¡°The walls between worlds weaken once per year, in midsummer. We go then or wait another year.¡± He told her.


    There was a bit less than three months until midsummer. Renna did not feel ready to go yet. There was too much unfinished business in this world for her. There was a certain castle she needed to torch. And her beast was not ready either.


    ¡°Can we stay a year more? I want ¡­ to learn how to be a dragon first, before we go.¡± She asked.


    He smiled. That would put his stay in this realm at a bit more than eight years.


    ¡°If you wish. We start with your lessons tomorrow.¡± He said.

 Flying

    Renna was both excited and nervous to start her lesson next morning and she suspected the beast was the excited one and she just worried. They were planning to practice flying but to make it safe, she would fly in human form in her harness saddle down to meadow in the mountains that had space for practice without risk of immediate capital punishment for failure.


    Breakfast had never seemed to take this long and on top of that Arion spent ages untangling his flight harness. Both Renna and her beast were impatient to be out there and learning. When they finally landed at the meadow it was nearly noon. Arion had packed their lunch, so they would have all day.


    Renna¡¯s patience was further tested when Arion laid out the picnic blanket and insisted on a theory lesson before practice.


    ¡°So, how do you think flying works?¡± He asked her teasingly.


    ¡°You flap your wings and go?¡± Renna answered, knowing full well that since the question was asked, the obvious answer was probably not going to cut it.


    He laughed. ¡°Dragons are too big for that¡­ On brute force alone they can fly just about as much as chicken can.¡±


    Renna was surprised. He seemed to fly so effortlessly¡­


    ¡°Try it, if you want¡­¡± he suggested.


    Renna stripped, transformed and let the beast have a go.


    Lots of flapping, frustrated roars and one torched tree later Renna transformed back, pulled on a loosely fitting robe and sat down dejectedly.


    Arion stopped laughing. He had been rolling on the ground in stitches watching her antics.


    ¡°Now I know how my mother felt trying to teach me.¡± He said with an ear to ear grin. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Renna, I did no better on my first try.¡±


    Renna perked up. ¡°So what¡¯s the trick?¡± She demanded.


    ¡°Magic obviously,¡± he said and levitated himself an inch off the ground.


    ¡°Dragons need magic to fly. They are the focus point of it, they draw it out of the world. Even this one, hostile to magic, has some for them to draw on, but as beasts they can¡¯t consciously shape it¡­ They need their human part to take care of the magic conversion for taking the weight off them. Then, the dragon will do the flying.¡± He explained.


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    Renna understood¡­ Magic was needed to make the beast light enough to fly. And she would need to learn to do that magic or she would not ever be able to fly. Her face fell.


    ¡°It¡¯s all about cooperation between you and the beast¡­ to fly you need to work together. The beast flies, you provide the lift. At first, it¡¯s going to need full concentration, but with some practice it will become automatic. Just like when you learn to walk - at first it¡¯s hard, but it will become second nature soon enough.¡±


    Renna nodded.


    ¡°So - this is how my mother taught me. We transform. My beast puts its head against yours. This lets me give a bit of my magic so you know what you will be looking for. And then you will need to find its source within your beast. When you find it, you will need to guide it to run through you and transform into something that makes your beast lighter and lighter until she floats. I will stay connected and try to help you if you draw too much or lose control of the magic. You will need to keep doing this no matter what your beast does¡­ or you two will crash. So please be careful¡­¡± he implored.


    They got up and shifted. Renna was not entirely sure how she felt about magic, but she did want to fly. So there was no way around it. Soon there were two beasts standing with their foreheads touching seemingly doing nothing, but that was far from the truth.


    Renna felt the magic when Arion pushed some towards her. It felt like hot tub water back home - pleasantly warm and kind of¡­ clingy like water. But it had a yellowish-golden aura to it in Renna¡¯s mind. Then it disappeared. So there must be a source of this somewhere¡­ She went searching with her mind. Beast observed her curiously. She wasn¡¯t finding anything. Then she remembered something Arion had said - that the beast is the focus that draws magic out of the world. She turned to it and tried to show her the feeling she had got from tasting Arion¡¯s magic mixed with a sense of need, of longing. The beast seemed to understand¡­ The next moment Renna was drowning in a powerful river of magic streaming from the beast. She felt swept away.


    Seconds later she could feel Arion diverting some of the magic giving her a chance to try to communicate to the beast that yes, this was indeed what she needed, but could she try to limit it a bit¡­ The beast understood and slowly the gushing river dwindled into something that she felt she could contain.


    She started trying to absorb and convert the magic into a light yellow substance that would make the beast lighter. The beast seemed to fill up with light. Renna was concentrating hard and had totally forgotten about the outside world, but the beast had not. As it felt the lightness fill it, she just could not resist any more - she kicked off the ground and flew up. They didn¡¯t get far. The sudden movement startled Renna and her concentration broke. The beast landed. It was not a crash, but it was quite close to being one. They had flown maybe a dragon¡¯s length. But they had flown!


    Arion shifted back and waited her to do the same


    ¡°Are you okay,¡± he demanded.


    ¡°Yes, yes I¡¯m fine. Did you see that!? We flew!¡± She chirped happily.


    Then she got serious ¡°How much practice will it take to be able to really fly?¡± She asked.


    ¡°If you practice a lot, you might be able to hunt with me next month,¡± he said smiling.


    Renna was determined to practice every day.

 Training

    The next day Arion had Renna do some practice at home. They got started at the breakfast table.


    ¡°Your beast can give a bit of magic even in this form,¡± he explained, ¡°It¡¯s almost nothing compared to what the beast shape can give, but it''s enough to do something with.¡±


    Renna asked the beast about it and received a small stream of magic¡­


    ¡°And of course, it depends where you are ¡­ The cave is magical in itself, our beasts can draw more in here than they can outside in this form. It is at most enough to do a simple illusion or float an inch off the ground out there¡­ But here, it''s close to what it is in my world.¡°


    Renna pondered how little it must be out there, if this was about the same as in his world.


    ¡±Just don¡¯t try anything crazy¡­ This place has a finite magic source and if you drain it, the cave will pack itself up and we get trapped in solid rock. Not what we want¡­¡±


    Renna¡¯s face must have shown some guilt when she snapped out of her thoughts - she had been pondering about floating herself to the ceiling. Floating was the only trick she knew¡­


    Arion laughed.


    ¡°Now tell me what you were thinking of when I said that¡­ I will tell you if it¡¯s safe or not¡± He demanded.


    Renna told him.


    ¡°Actually, this is what I want you to do today.¡± He said, ¡°Just go about your day, always floating. To do this you need to do the same as when you float your dragon.¡±


    ¡°It''s not too much?¡± She asked.


    ¡°No, too much would be for example trying to turn cabbages into gold.¡± He told her.


    Renna nodded. The thought of trying something like that had of course never occurred to her¡­ But now that it was forbidden, she could feel the appeal¡­


    ¡°You should be fine with most things that do not change the true nature of something.¡± He specified.


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    ¡°So, no changing my hair color?¡± She asked.


    ¡°No changing yourself. I like you exactly the way you are anyway¡­¡± and kissed him.


    Renna smiled.


    ¡°Now, please float yourself and have breakfast that way. I will wait. I will laugh. I hope you don¡¯t have long grudges.¡± He instructed her with a charming smile.


    Renna tried. First three times reaching for food was enough to drop her roughly on the chair. But she persisted. Breakfast took two hours. By the end of it she could maintain lift long enough to finish her tea and cookie dessert without incident, but she failed to notice that Arion had removed her chair from underneath her. When she eventually landed on the floor with a crash, Arion used the moment to lecture her on maintaining awareness of one''s surroundings, or it would be impossible for her to hunt.


    Renna swore to get back at him for this somehow and got up from the floor. She had intended to go to the weaving room to work on the rug but Arion insisted she¡¯d go floating. Renna couldn¡¯t figure out how she was supposed to propel herself forward until Arion handed him a broom and said ¡°Push!¡±


    Then he took a mop for himself, directed his own magic for a bit of lift and scooted off taunting Renna to chase. Renna could not resist the temptation. They engaged in this bizarre and very funny form of tag all over the cave until lunch.


    Lunch went much faster than breakfast, an apple thrown unexpectedly was curtly dogged and Renna headed to the weaving room for mixing her practice with her work. The tall frame was now full two thirds of the way and she had been using a footstool but even that was soon not going to cut it.


    Renna worked happily for three hours floating up and down the frame until she felt too tired to continue. Flight was a useful trick to have. But there was still a bit of revenge to plot. She floated to the tub room, acquired a bucket full of water and floated with it in hand to the great hall door. It took her a few tries to accomplish floating both herself and the bucket, but eventually she managed the feat. Then she put some more effort into it to float the heavy bucket above the door and place it so it could be easily dumped. Then she called Arion.


    He came and was subsequently trenched in water. When he went to grab the miscreant she just floated up and away from his arm reach and taunted him from there.


    ¡°What did you say about staying aware of your surroundings?¡± She called out from above.


    Arion was actually a bit floored for other reasons than being trenched. He couldn¡¯t do either of the two things she had just done - float something separate from himself and move while floating. He had considered them to be in fact impossible. But it seems not knowing that the thing one was going to do is impossible helps. And he wasn¡¯t going to let her know he could not do this either.


    ¡°Somebody has been practicing, I see¡­¡± he said a bit sourly.


    He knew just the thing, that would bring her right down.


    ¡°Tomorrow, we will go try this outside.¡±


    ¡°Really!?¡± Renna chirped excitedly and lost focus.


    Arion caught her with satisfaction and kissed her.