He’d been flying again. The dream, the terrible, lovely dream, had taken him through the clouds on his blue streak, towards the green mountains. He could feel the air flowing past him as the streak cleaved it underneath him - the cold dampness of the clouds and the drier chill of thinner air stinging his cheeks in a way that had only happened in his dreams for many years. Miles blended and sped behind them as they shot through the air, dancing in the sky for the few moments they could spare before they were driven on by the overwhelming sense of duty weighing on the dream. The streak leveled off, taking them on a straight path down towards the emerald peaks. Then it dove into the tunnels. The streak took him down, into the winding, dark caverns that traced through the mountains in his dream. Mossy, stale air greeted him as the walls of the tunnels flashed by beside him, flying at a blindingly fast pace through the ancient tunnels. They only got stranger the deeper they went; Small creatures ducked into pockmarks and cracks in the stone and larger flying creatures burst out of his way with peculiar glowing streaks in their coloration. The walls began to change, studded with bioluminescent plants and swaying, glowing reeds growing from small underground pools and streams. Glowing blues and greens swayed in the wake of the flying traveler, until suddenly he burst into the main cavern. There it was. The tremendous subterranean blister was something alien, something impossible. It was larger than the Galast’s capital city - from his position streaking through the sky, he couldn’t see the other side of the massive rock dome. Tremendous spires of stone held the granite sky aloft. Dark caves pockmarked the tremendous columns and the stone was welded together seamlessly. Similar caves dotted the walls of the bubble, leading back into the tremendous network of winding caverns that led through the mountains. Splashing waterfalls echoed quietly through the cavern from various caverns that moved water through the underground, emptying down over the sides and ceiling of the massive cave into a huge, crystal clear lake that filled a third of the cavern’s ground. The sound drove home a simple fact - there was nothing here. Short of the small creatures and the bugs that fed on the wild glowing plants, the cavern was only inhabited by phantoms. The incredible loneliness of the strange cavern was even more oppressive as he flashed between the pillars, weaving between the odd constructs. Finally, after a few minutes of slashing between the solid, ageless pillars, there it was. A tremendous, glowing crystal. He could feel the power washing off the massive gem; larger than even the largest of the columns, the huge crystal was the source of the cavern’s yellow illumination. Magical energy radiated off the colossal crystal, powerful enough that even through the fog of his barely-lucid dream his skin tingled. A single thought ran through his mind, as it did every time in his recurring dream. Drav Nikon. He was only able to admire the gem for a few more moments as the blue streak beneath him began to slow. Behind the crystal, with a deep rumble, a dark form reared up. A tremendous, shadowy behemoth rose from behind the shimmering crystal. Tremendous chunks of rubble roared as they tumbled off the massive creature’s form. Sharp, crystalline shapes collected and refracted the sunstone’s light, scattering it off the shaded creature. The behemoth reached up nearly to the ceiling of the mile-high cavern. The lift diffused and diffracted off the shadowy figure’s form, the rocky form of the lumbering creature collecting and consuming the light that touched it. The form of the huge creature twisted and crawled with dancing shadows, leaving only a craggy outline visible in the light of the cavern, staring out towards the intruder with a pair of glowing, crimson eyes. An earth-shaking roar jarred him awake. *** Ailmer woke with the earsplitting roar still echoing in his ears. The weight in his bed and the warmth against him let him come to much more slowly than he was used to. He smiled and let his eyes open slowly, and in his fugue, he still expected to see blue instead of the green scales that greeted him in the morning light. He couldn’t help but gasp - all thought of the dream he’d had again banished in the few moments of confusion when he woke. He barely managed to choke down a yelp as his fingers dug into the pillow. A wave of confused emotions hit Ailmer all at once as he watched Beroan’s flank slowly rise and fall in the morning light, the dark blue scales Ailmer saw slowly draining back to green as his mind readjusted to discard the sudden hallucination. He took his time, his breath slowly coming back to him as he focused on calming himself down from the dream and his vision, closing his eyes again to let his head fall forward, resting his forehead against the warm bulk of the dragon in bed with him. He couldn’t stop his heart from pounding… He’d been alone for so long. His thoughts drifted back to the previous days experience. He’d certainly not expected the drake to… thank him the way that he had. He even doubted that the green dragon had done what he did in the bath as a matter of thanks. He chuckled slightly to himself, going over the encounter in his head to change his thoughts to a much more pleasant topic than what sleep had brought him. Even still, there was a bit of surreality to the whole situation; this drake that he’d barely met was already sleeping in his bed. It was a familiar sensation, but it brought up a deep, painful ache deep inside of him. He couldn’t keep himself from sighing, the human squirming gently as he readjusted, doing his best to keep his motions from disturbing his impulsive partner. His motions were in vain, however. With his slight shifting the dragon gave a squirm. A low, rumbling sound accompanied the drake’s slow motion as he began to shift from his side towards his back. Ailmer froze, mid-shift, as he tried to make sure that his motions wouldn’t jostle the dragon from his tenuous grasp on sleep. Beroan rumbled softly, his eyes still closed as he flopped bonelessly onto his back, the dragon’s legs falling apart slowly. All of Ailmer’s thoughts were dashed with this motion, his eyes locked onto the dragon’s throbbing, stiff spire jutting out into the air. That thick cock pulsed softly, a pearlescent drop of precum topping the pointed tip. A soft flex made that heavy cock bob with a lazy press of his hips up and a slow rumble from the snoozing dragon. Ailmer couldn’t help himself but let out a chuckle as he noted the contrast between the pair’s dreams. That thought alone distracted him. Visions of the abandoned, impossible city sprung forward into his head again. Ailmer slowly shook his head, forcing his mind to dispel the thoughts so that he could rumble and slowly press himself up against the warm side of the dragon in front of him. Beroan made for much better thoughts. The drake seemed to still be lost in sleep. His breath came deep and slow, the gentle rise and fall of the drake’s broad chest was only interrupted by his short, intermittent snores that transformed the soft breeze of his breath into a stone tumbling down a hill. Ailmer closed his eyes, taking the chance to snuggle up against that side just a bit more. The dragon’s warm scales pressed against his shirtless front. The small, thumbnail sized scales were pliable, feeling much like smooth leather rather than the stone that they were rumored to be. He was acutely aware of the strength of those smooth scales, however. Their legendary attributes to turn blade and fire were often underestimated in the legends. However, Ailmer was also acutely aware of just how sensitive they could be. Maybe he was just trying to distract himself from the hazardous corners of his mind that kept trying to well up. Maybe he was just being greedy and trying to insert himself into whatever lovely dream the dragon in his bed was having. Maybe the drake had just snoozed too damn long and the lonely human wanted a piece of that dream for himself. Whatever the conflicting reasons in Ailmer’s mind were, his actions were measured. A scritch here, a gentle sneak of his hand up along the drake’s side; a slow, teasing rub just below the crook of the dragon’s foreleg and a gentle nip on the side of the dragon’s neck. The drake rumbled softly in his sleep, stirring again. He shifted slightly, the dragon’s hind leg pulling back a bit with the sensations short-circuiting his nerves. The dragon’s pawtoes scrunched softly with the motion. Ailmer grinned to himself as a few fingers teasing in just the right spots teased an unconscious shudder out of the snoozing dragon. The human pressed himself forward again, slowly grinding his own bulge against the dragon’s flank. Finally, Beroan slowly stirred, the dragon letting out a soft rumble as one eye lazily drew open. He took his time examining the scene, resting in the afterglow of what ended up being his first good nights sleep since he’d begun to run. His breath came in a slow sigh while he turned his head to glance over at the human cuddling up against him before another touch teased a warm grunt out of him. His eyes shut again for a moment, his body tensing up a bit with the touch to an almost-ticklish spot. “Rrrrf…” he rumbled out. Ailmer couldn’t keep the slight smirk off his face as he watched the dragon slowly wake to a rather pleasant morning. Beroan certainly didn’t seem to mind too much, his cock flexing slightly again as Ailmer stroked slowly across his chest. “Sleep well?” Beroan took his time to answer, the drake answer halted by another slow shiver. He was suddenly very aware of his throbbing erection jutting out over his hips, the drake too excited and far too much a dragon to be bashful about it. The dragon shifted slightly, nodding lazily. “Yesss… I dreamt rather well.” Ailmer nodded slowly, teasing another soft rumble out from the dragon with a light nip at his neck. He nodded against the male, slowly stroking down over his belly with a playful rumble, before his fingers slowly wrapped around the swollen base of the dragon’s cock. That stiff flesh was significantly warmer than the rest of the dragon’s hide. The soft, smooth skin surrounded a much stiffer core. His fingers gently squeezed and pressed into the warm flesh, the dragon giving a hot huff while the Ailmer’s fingers slowly teased that throbbing erection, the dragon’s knot slowly swelling out against his fingers. That pliable mound throbbed eagerly, the drake’s tail sweeping along the edge of the bed quickly with the humans teasing fingers. His hips bucked up slightly into the stimulation, jostling the glistening drop of precum from his pointed tip to drip onto his belly. “I could tell, horny lizard.” Ailmer growled playfully. Beroan’s grumbling was lost in a soft moan as his vent flexed, pressing his stiff morning wood into Ailmer’s palm. He bit his lip, his forepaws crossing over his chest, pulling gently at his forelegs as his body tensed up, instinctively trying to hold a mate close in against his chest. Ailmer rumbled softly, his hand slowly fondling up over that cock, his fingers going far too slow to be anything but teasing. He fondled over the dragon’s ridges slowly, letting his fingertips feel over each of the drake’s three stiff swells along his beefy shaft before they slowly fondled up underneath the dragon’s arrowhead tip. They gently worked underneath the stiff cockhead, squeezing the stiffer shaft underneath before Ailmer began to palm the drake’s pointed, softer tip. Beroan let out a soft huff, the dragon growling softly as he ground his hips up into the human’s exploring hand, pressing his tip eagerly against the warm hand working his tip, spreading his next drop of pre over Ailmer’s teasing digits. Ailmer warmly worked his fingers over that tip, spreading the slickening sex fluid over the dragon’s productive cockhead, a few fingers stroking up along the very tip of Beroan’s cock. “Rrrrh… I’m the horny one?” Beroan rumbled throatily. Ailmer didn’t answer immediately, instead teasing a shivering gasp out of the erect dragon beside him. His fingers worked expertly over the dragon’s drooling tip. Beroan squirmed, letting out a hot gasp while he ground into the human’s hand. The drake whined softly, the dragon arching his back into the bed. The thick oak gave a slight creak in protest as the large creature pressed down into it, pressing down and kicking the blankets off slowly with his slow, needy motions. Ailmer’s palm worked over the dragon’s throbbing tip, teasing another shivering gasp out from the dragon beside him. Beroan’s toes gripped the sheets, the dragon giving a deep, throaty rumble. “Crystal claws, you’re too good at this…” Ailmer answered with a chuckle, a grin spreading over his face while he reached up, working that throbbing knot in the base of the drake’s prick with his other hand. Beroan gave a hot growl, the dragon trying to keep his body from humping too much into the teasing male’s hands. Ailmer growled softly himself, licking his lips as he teased more of those delicious noises of needy pleasure from the dragon. Beroan couldn’t do much more than squirm and hump up into the human’s talented, teasing fingers. The drake’s throbbing, ridged cock pulsed against Ailmer’s fingers, spreading pre generously against the human’s hand. That thick ebony cock quickly began to glisten in the light as Ailmer massaged the hot, sticky precum back against the male’s heavy cock. Between the dragon’s warm chuffs of pleasure the drake managed to squirm a bit, the male tensing up slowly as those hands fondled and worked over his thick cock. This intimate massage continued for several long minutes. The dragon squirmed and huffed, each eager noise of pleasure accompanied by a powerful repeat of the motion that caused it. Ailmer ignored his painfully stiff cock for the moment, though he couldn’t help himself from grinding a few times against the squirming dragon’s warm flank, as his nimble hands worked carefully over that slick cock, coated in sticky, hot precum. He felt the drake tense up before a long, shivery moan shuddered its way out of the dragon, signaling his peak. With another intense stroke over the drake’s cocktip and a sudden grip around the male’s big knot the dragon couldn’t hold back any longer. “S-Shards!” He drake hissed out through clenched teeth as he finally arched back, his pawtoes gripping the sheets tightly before he began to shoot his load. The dragon’s tremendous cock flexed powerfully in Ailmer’s hands. That thick cock shot in hot, powerful spurts, pouring several thick shots of the dragon’s thick cum against his palms. Hot cum dripped down over the dragon’s jet black cock in thick white rivulets. Ailmer gave a rumble of appreciation, his noise interrupted by another tensed grunt from the drake. The human smirked, shifting his hand slightly, letting the last few shots of the drake’s orgasm messily splash over the male’s belly scales. His fingers continued teasing over the male’s thick cock through that orgasm, his hands squeezing in opposition to the dragon’s powerful throbs, earning him more of those lovely grunts and growls of pleasure. Finally, it came to an end, leaving the dragon’s thick cock streaked with hot cum, with more of the thick white fluid clinging to the drake’s belly, pooling between the larger scales and inside the lips of the dragon’s stuffed vent. “Makith’s fire, dragon, that dream had you pent up.” Ailmer teased, looking down at his cum soaked fingers, pearls of the drake’s seed weighing down glistening strings that spider-webbed between his slick fingers. Beroan answered with a lazy rumble, slowly letting the tension drain from him. He released the poor, creased bedsheets before he leaned forward, the dragon wrapping his nimble tongue around several of Ailmer’s slick fingers, tugging them into his maw with a rumble. Ailmer gasped with the sudden motion, especially as the dragon’s teeth barely flashed in the morning light, but his surprise turned into a pleased smirk as that tongue squeezed around his fingers. He splayed out his hand, letting the dragon lick it clean. He relaxed a bit against the dragon, offering his other hand to the male’s tongue. He took a few breaths, relaxing with the dragon in his afterglow while the drake’s slick tongue lapped over his hands. Soon the drake pulled back a bit, nuzzling between Ailmer’s saliva-coated hands to lap over his own shaft, cleaning that off as well. Ailmer couldn’t help but stare with a light blush as the drake’s tongue lapped at his shaft, the thick cock bobbing slightly with each lick. “Dirty dragon…” He teased. Beroan blinked slightly, slowly pulling his thick shaft from his muzzle, his cock glistening with saliva. “But now it’s all clean?” He asked. Ailmer couldn’t help himself, a grin splitting his cheeks as began to laugh. The dragon stretched out a bit, tail wagging a bit. “What?” He asked, the dragon dragging his tongue over his belly scales. Ailmer shook his head, his laugh calming to an amused chuckle. “People call sexual things dirty, even if they’re not. I suppose with the bath and cleaning this morning’s, ah, mess I can see how you might have misunderstood.” Beroan’s eyes lit up in sudden understanding, followed instantly by his muzzle splitting in a mischievous grin. Ailmer was too caught up in his mirth to notice the sudden change in expression, before the dragon twisted in the bed and flipped himself over, tackling the giggling human with a throaty growl in a casual athletic twist that would put felines to shame. Ailmer yelped as he was suddenly pushed down into the bed, his chest held firmly down by one of the dragon’s forepaws. The dragon rumbled warmly, that grin significantly more threatening than it had any right to be; however, the effect of his bared teeth was dampened by the feel of the dragon’s thick erection dragging over Ailmer’s crotch. “I suppose I ought to earn that title if you’re going to persist adding it to my name.” He rumbled, giving a long, slow grind down against the human. His thick cock throbbed slowly as the damp shaft ground against the human’s obvious tent. Ailmer let out a groan, playfully pushing at the big dragon’s ankle. “Now, however is the dragon going to solidify his naughtiness?” Ailmer rumbled out, arching his hips slightly against that heavy cock grinding against his nearly painfully-stiff erection. He couldn’t help but give a slight shiver and grunt as the motion distracted him from the dragon licking his lips as he debated exactly how to earn his title. Beroan rumbled softly, looking over the pinned human before he finally decided. His hips drew back, the dragon purring throatily in a dragon’s peculiar way, before he leaned back, making sure to catch Ailmer’s eye before biting his waistband lightly with a playful growl. Ailmer couldn’t help but shiver slightly as the drake tugged back, pulling the small amount of linen that vainly attempted to claim that things like ‘proper’ and ‘decent’ applied in any measure to the situation at hand. Ailmer huffed softly, groaning gently while Beroan’s overeager muzzle darted back, barely managing to have the patience to pull the human’s clothing down to his thighs. His warm muzzle brushed against Ailmer’s stiff shaft, the drake letting out a soft huff of pleasure as he nosed at the stiff rod bobbing against the small, leathery scales of his muzzle. The drake seemed to take his time, his paw’s digits gently tapping against Ailmer’s belly as he slowly nosed and played with the human’s strange cock. Ailmer rumbled happily, the human squirming a bit underneath that paw as he tried to keep himself from seeming too eager. He was needy after playing with the drake’s shaft, and seeing his shaft framed against the drake’s muzzle was a view that was far more than teasing. “You’re well on your way to earning that honorific, naughty dragon…” Beroan huffed softly, his lips parting suddenly to let his slick tongue out to slurp quickly against the underside of Ailmer’s cock. That hot, slick muscle easily slurped along his shaft, teasing a sudden squirm out of Ailmer. He’d been right to be jealous as he watched the dragon clean himself, a fact that was made even more apparent as Beroan’s blunt muzzle slid over his shaft, enveloping his stiff member in sudden, slick heat. He bit his lip with a groan, suddenly reaching up to grab at the dragon’s leg as he arched up into that muzzle. He could feel the drake’s talented tongue wrapping tightly around his shaft. He huffed, reaching forward to stroke slowly over the dragon’s cheek, earning him a sudden powerful slurp. Beroan kept his eyes pointedly locked with Ailmer’s while he teased out the same sort of pleasured noises that the human had been so eager to pull from the dragon. Ailmer gritted his teeth, arching into the dragon’s eager muzzle, gasping out when he felt the drake smoothly slide his tip into his throat. “Gods, Beroan…” Ailmer couldn’t get much further than that before his words devolved into choked grunts and eager moans. The dragons’ tongue worked in ways that nothing else could. The strong muscle twisted and squeezed over that cock, collaring under the tip to tug up and work over the tip in the few moments that the dragon wasn’t pounding his throat with the other male’s shaft. Some little thought in the back of his mind wondered how the drake was so good at this, answering his own question rather quickly when he realized how the drake had cleaned himself up. That thought was lost quickly while the dragon redoubled his efforts. Beroan worked his muzzle up and down quickly, letting out hot pants and soft chuffs of pleasure against the human. Hot breath poured out over his hips while the drake powerfully worked his muzzle down. Ailmer shivered slightly under the dragon’s splaying paw, biting his lip as every time he looked down the drake was staring right back up at him. The view of the muzzle working down over his shaft, that tongue kept wrapped tightly around his base as the drake drew back was almost too much for him. Between the view and the fact that he was already pent up, it didn’t take too much more work from the dragon’s powerful tongue to shoot him to climax. Ailmer groaned and arched himself back, gripping the dragon’s chin and foreleg reflexively as the large male slurped over his thick shaft. He arched up eagerly into the dragon’s muzzle, gasping as the dragon grinned around his shaft, suckling powerful as he finally hit his peak, gulping audibly with each powerful throb of Ailmer’s shaft. The human hissed and tensed, shivering slightly with each powerful gulp as the dragon gulped down his orgasm. His jaw clenched as he slowly came down from his peak, jerking softly as the dragon’s tongue continued its assault, teasing a few gasps and shivers out from the pinned human as Beroan continued suckling on Ailmer’s post-orgasm, oversensitive cock. It took a few more moans and squirms from the human until he could recover his breath, his fingers warmly stroking over the drake’s muzzle. “Mngh, dirty, dirty dragon…” He huffed out. Beroan rumbled throatily, carefully watching the human as he kept working his prehensile tongue around the male’s shaft, savoring every shift and quiver from his lover. He couldn’t help but admit to himself that he was overly enjoying the exploration of the human’s exotic shaft. He rumbled softly, slowly letting that cock slip from his muzzle to flop wetly against the human’s belly, the dragon taking his time to admire the strange pink rod, slowly lapping at the cock. Humans were just so different. The lack of scales, the softer skin, the color, the taste, the stance. He couldn’t cloak his fascination with the walkers, apparent as Ailmer had to push his muzzle away from that sensitive shaft with a shiver and an insolent whine from the drake. “I suppose you’ve certainly earned your title… give me a few moments, though? Flames, that tongue’s intense.” Ailmer panted, rumbling softly. Beroan let out a soft rumbled of playful displeasure as he slowly pulled all the way back, slinking back into bed again to flop down beside the human, squirming a bit to wiggle his head back up onto Ailmer’s chest. Ailmer reached up to drape an arm around the dragon’s neck, enjoying the warmth of the drake against him. Memories began to prick at the edges of the afterglow. Ailmer sighed softly, closing his eyes with a soft sigh. Beroan glanced up, his brow scrunching slightly in a surprisingly human-like fashion as he watched a bit of conflict flash over Ailmer’s face. Beroan rumbled happily, lidding his eyes halfway as he simply rested against the other creature, letting Ailmer retreat into his thoughts. Not all things could last and as enjoyable as their afterglow was, the midmorning sun peeking unkindly through the shutters on the window reminded Ailmer that he had to go into town today. He took a breath, sighing slightly as he reached up to slowly rub over the dragon’s head. His fingers spread over the pebbly scales of the large drake, slowly scratching over the strong leathery skin. He traces over the dragon’s brow, slowly petting back to scritch behind one of the drake’s earfins, teasing out a little rumble from Beroan. That warm fin flicked slightly against the back of his hand when he hit the right spots. Finally, Ailmer was interrupted by another, more familiar rumble from underneath the drake. He chuckled softly, gently rubbing back under that ear to cause the dragon to playfully roll his head a bit to the side. “Well, it’s getting a bit late in the morning. I assume you’re rather hungry, too.” Beroan nodded slightly, pressing his head a bit into those fingers. “I can always eat.” He replied, his voice tinted with a bit more eagerness than his statement let on. Ailmer nodded, patting the dragons head lightly with another rub. Beroan grumbled a bit, pressing his head a bit more tightly against Ailmer’s torso before slowly pulling back to let him up. They both squirmed a bit, neither one really wanted to leave the bed. But another insolent rumble from Ailmer’s protesting stomach finally goaded him into standing. He didn’t bother pulling on clothing; it was warm enough with the early fall heat that breeches were unnecessary, and if Ailmer had guessed one thing about the greedy dragon, Beroan certainly wouldn’t mind the view. The drake certainly didn’t mind, but it wasn’t quite enough to pull him from his lazy, lizard-like sprawl over the mussed up sheets. Ailmer chuckled softly to himself as he stepped down the stairs, heading to the kitchen on autopilot. He didn’t mind the bit of respite back in his thoughts. Ah, good, he had enough cast iron to feed the drake. He’d have to use the pot, though. He set the fire going in the hearth with a bit of a sigh as he thought back. The whole thing seemed a little sudden. It was obvious that the dragon had a fetish, and, he supposed, that he did as well. Of all the people that Beroan could have been found by, he might have been the only person outside of the Mage’s college that could have saved him, and he doubted anyone else would have been quite as receptive to the drake’s advances. He nodded slightly to himself, counting out eggs from a basket on the counter. Seven for the dragon, three for himself. Plenty of sausage, that goes in first. He sighed, working the meat into the pan as it heated on the hearth. Maybe it was Makith’s will or Halin playing some game with Sikith. He growled, shaking his head as the wooden spoon worked the meat a bit more violently as it sizzled against the pot. He thought he was done with the gods’ games. They’d taken enough from him, hadn’t they? He sighed, shaking his head as he mechanically cracked the eggs into the pan. If the gods really were at work again, he didn’t have much of a choice. He supposed, cynically, that with all they’d taken from him already, he had very little to lose. His thoughts pulled back again as he continued cooking, taking in the dire warning the dragon had woken with. Half of Astal, under siege from armies of Ikthil. He remembered the gem wars intimately. When he wasn’t dreaming about the subterranean tunnels, the glimmering carapaces of the hulking gem monsters haunted his mind. If the dragon was correct and the situation was that bad, it was only a matter of time before he was pulled back into it. Ailmer still couldn’t bring himself to believe that he’d really fought Ikthil spiders in the mountains to save the drake. His train of thought was interrupted as a scaled muzzle poked around the corner. Ailmer glanced over his shoulder to spot Beroan padding stiffly into the room. He was obviously still favoring his uninjured side, but for having a broken leg a few days ago, Ailmer was surprised to see him putting any weight on it at all. “I knew you didn’t need to much more goading to leave the sheets.” He teased. Beroan rumbled softly, a slight yawn parting his lips as he glanced over to the cook, lifting his muzzle to sniff lightly at the air. “Rrf, smells good. ‘M hungry.” Ailmer nodded slightly, working the mixture together before sliding it into the hearth beside the glowing fire. “I thought so. Do you like bread?” He asked, watching the drake pad across towards the fire. “Bread?” Beroan asked. Ailmer shook his head and smiled slightly, slicing a few extra slices to lay them inside the hearth as well. “How are the wounds treating you? Anything hurt?” Beroan nodded slightly. “I feel much better than I thought during the fight. Some scales itch, but…” He started, trailing off. “But you’re alive.” Ailmer nodded, callously finishing the dragon’s thought. Beroan nodded slightly, but the dragon couldn’t let his mood down for long, especially as he sniffed the air again. His tongue snaked out to lick along his lips, the dragon padding forward to nuzzle up towards the fire, curiously examining the sizzling pan. A low rumble sounded from the drake - though it was quite different than the usual noises the dragon made, emanating from his belly rather than throat. Ailmer chuckled, shaking his head. “It ought to be done, let me get it out.” He shook his head, glancing over the excited dragon. Beroan’s tail wagged quickly as he watched the human pull the food out, the dragon pushing forward to bump against the human as he tried to peer around him, his muzzle trying to push Ailmer out of the way. The human chuckled, bumping the dragon’s head to the side with his hips, a motion that only increased the eagerness of the dragon’s push against him. Ailmer smiled to himself, nearly spilling the pot over the counter as the drake pushed up beside him. “Hey, hold for a minute, greedy lizard.” Beroan huffed, pushing back against the human’s hips with his muzzle, still trying to get a better view on the process. Ailmer shook his head, suddenly shifting to the side, flicking the spoon to drop a large dollop of the mixture on top of the drake’s muzzle. Beroan yelped insolently, his eyes fixed on the messy splatter. He preoccupied himself with attempting to carefully lick up around his muzzle with his flexible tongue, his eyes nearly crossed as he focused. Ailmer held back a laugh, quickly preparing the actual breakfast for the pair. It was on the table once Beroan had finished cleaning himself off, leaving the two to a leisurely breakfast before Ailmer really started his day. *** Ailmer sighed slightly as he glanced back towards the mill. He was certainly enjoying the company, but he was already exhausted. His mind was already reeling from the short amount of time with the dragon, but he was already enjoying the quiet walk towards Mossly proper. Part of his head needed the respite; he wasn’t used to another in the mill, let alone in his bed. Part of his mind loved every second of reprieve from the normally silent mill. However, another part of his mind, the most insidious bit that saw blue where Beroan’s scales were green was busy making scars itch and digging up old, painful memories to point at accusingly. He shook his head, trying to busy his mind with thoughts of the day ahead. That little bit of the back of his mind was still yelling, bringing up names and memories violence of a long time ago. He’d long since learned to dull the noise, but so many of the recent events had brought it right up again. His palms still ached slightly and he could still feel the sharp cracks from the strikes he’d delivered to the spiders. He sighed, rubbing into his palm with a light sigh. He knew this wasn’t going to end in the forest, was it? He shook his head, drawing his thoughts back to the day ahead. He had plenty of banal work in front of him, but given the most recent of events, he was eager to get back to the mill to distract himself. The early fall day was entirely too hot. The bright sun beat down through the changing leaves of the forest, scattering the shadows of the leaves over the gravel trail as his boots crunched down the hill from the mill towards Mossly’s main street. He sighed, trying not to let the final few days of warm summer heat ruin his melancholy. There were only a few wispy clouds in the blue sky and the spicy scent of the changing forest in the clear mountain breeze gave the short hike an idyllic air. Ailmer, however, hunkered his head down a bit, glancing tensely into the trees. *** “There ain’t nothing to be done about it.” Sebastian rumbled, “Fredril isn’t going to be in this week. Travel from the border’s been slow lately.” Ailmer wiped his forehead with his sleeve, turning to shut the heavy door of the tavern behind him. “See, I told you he ain’t dead.” Sebastian shot at the burly brown-haired man at the bar, straightening up from his neurotic polishing of some imaginary spot on the the slate counter. Sebastian reached up to brush a few stray strands of jet black hair from his eyes. Ailmer glanced up, waving to the two in the quiet midmorning bar. Reece lifted his tankard, shaking his head. “It’s been near a week since I last seen that scarred mug of yours. We were about to start drawing pots to check on you.” Ailmer chuckled to himself. “A week of isolation isn’t going to kill me. I’ve got far too much to get done to die.” Sebastian smirked busying himself behind the counter. “Well, apparently that doesn’t include getting me my flour. Grain’s been sitting in the back and I’m gonna have to start baking the barrel into bread soon.” Ailmer reached up to rub under his eye, with a sheepish tightening of his lips. “That’s actually what I stopped by for. I’ve got a long list of supplies to grab up, too.” Sebastian shook his head, working a glass in his hand with a short towel. “It’s been so long and you’re all business. I suppose I’m not helping either. But if you’d heard, Fredril’s not even reached Halix.” Ailmer raised an eyebrow. “He’s got to be running long behind schedule if he’s not made it past the Astal border yet. He’s almost never late.” He paused, taking a tall glass of cider that Sebastian sat down in front of him thankfully, “How’d you hear that he’s been held up?” “People from Halix have been hiking inland lately. All kinds of strange rumors coming out of them. About ten or so have passed through here while you’ve been gone.” Sebastian answered. Reece nodded slightly, wiping his mouth on his soot-stained sleeve. “I still don’t know how you managed to get this miser to give you free drinks. But he’s right. Too many people have just been moving right out.” Ailmer smirked slightly as he took a long draw. “They’re anything but free, but that’s a story for another time. What have they been saying?” Reece and Sebastian shared a worried glance across the bar. “They’ve been saying lots of superstitious nonsense. Lots of rumblings about war in Astal, big one too, but nobody can give a straight answer on who’s fighting or invading who.” Ailmer nodded slowly, his brow scrunching up slightly as he recalled Beroan’s words. He tried to convince himself, again, that the rumblings were not as bad as he they could be. “Well, I’m glad I bought an extra block of salt from Fredril last month. War’s not good for anybody.” Sebastian grumbled softly to himself. “Just another excuse for the army to send more troops out our way.” Both the others at the tavern made it a point to avoid engaging that particular line of thought; they both had errands to do at some point today. As such, they both took simultaneous swigs of their respective drinks, giving Ailmer time to change the subject, “Oh! I’ve been meaning to ask, Reece. You know those iron posts you made a few weeks ago for the Yadils? The ones with the iron orb on top of the twisted pole?” Reece nodded. “Yeah, those turned out really well, and they were a lot simpler to make than I’d thought.” Ailmer took another swig. “I liked how they came out too - I was wondering if I could commission you to make two more, a little shorter, but with thick strips of copper inlaid into the bulb. I was thinking they’d look good in the torch holders on my door instead of leaving them empty.” Reece scrunched his eyebrows slightly, trying to think through the process of how he’d modify the stands. “So about a foot tall, smooth bottom to fit in those… How much copper?” “Five pieces? Finger thick or so, so it’d look about half copper.” “Yeah, I could do that. It should only take me a couple days. I’ve got another project or two, but I’ve got more spare iron than coin.” Ailmer smiled a bit, nodding. “Thanks, Reece. Ill try to be down here more often, but there’s no rush. They’d be vanity pieces anyway.” Reece nodded quickly. “Yeah, I should have them ready by the time that Fredril gets here for sure, especially if he’s not going to get here until next week.” Sebastian nodded. “That’s what the people from Halix have been saying. They claim he’s only a bit behind schedule. I can’t wait, though, I need more supplies before I start brewing next years cider.” “He ought to be able to confirm some of those rumors coming out of Astal, too.” Ailmer mentioned, “But you need flour? I can get you a couple bags today if you need it that badly.” The conversation devolved into more small talk, and it wasn’t very long before Ailmer began to get antsy. Whether it was from embarrassment from his failure to get those errands done earlier or from his worry about the dragon in his tower, he wasn’t sure. Whether it was his emotions or that he was still actually worn out from the past few days, the large burlap bags of grain weighed heavily on his shoulders while he waved himself out of the bar. A longer breath brought his thoughts back, leaving him searching through a bit of a fugue to walk back to the mill. *** Beroan watched curiously as Ailmer approached down the path again, carrying two heavy bags on his shoulders. His ear fins perked up, the dragon raising onto his hind legs to try to mess with the latch on the door. It took him a few moments to figure out the lock, clicking the small metal rod up and out of the way. He heard a click from the inside of the door - the ridges above his eyes furrowing when the wooden door swung open. He took a moment to examine the strange contraption inside the door, pulling down on the level to watch the metal piece slide back into the body of the door. But if he was pulling down, and the metal was moving side to side… His mind skipped off that particular puzzle for the moment as Ailmer hollered a greeting to him. Beroan slunk out of the door, padding along after a few blinks to clear the early afternoon sun from his eyes. He quickly hopped down to the gate, just before Ailmer finish struggling under his load. “Been keeping yourself busy?” He grunted. Beroan shook his head a bit in a surprisingly human-like answer, curiously looking over the bags that Ailmer was balancing, rearing up to sniff at one, supporting himself with a paw on the human’s chest. Ailmer yelped, stumbling a bit as he tried to keep himself from falling. “Beroan!” He chided, steadying himself as the dragon fell back onto all fours. “If you really want one of these, here.” He smirked, deftly hefting one up off his shoulder, right onto the quadruped’s back. Beroan grumbled insolently, stumbling a bit with the sudden weight atop him. He shifted a bit, huffing as he hefted the burlap sack over his back, staring daggers up at the human holding back a chortle above him. Ailmer’s smile cracked his lips as he shook his head. “Come on, then. These need to go to the mill. And they’re grain, for your information.” Beroan grumbled, trying to act as injured as he could; considering that an aching pride was rather hard to show off. “Or stones. My leg’s still hurt, you know.” Ailmer let his grin widen more as his face turned out of view, leading the way up towards the mill in the squat shed near the house. “You were jumping pretty well there.” He teased. Beroan hissed quietly, looking off to the side as he padded along. “Well, you can just tromp my tail.” “If that’s what you called yesterday.” He let slip before he could choke his reply back. Ailmer did manage to hold back any audible mirth as he heard the dragon hiss and grumble behind him. He narrowly managed to make the rest of the walk in silence, forcing himself to stoically resist the urge to break into laughter with the drake’s constant grumblings about the human, “Just using a proud dragon like a pack animal,” and “Dirty human doesn’t appreciate a fine dragontail like he should.” The dragon’s insolent ramblings forced the human to raise his hand to his mouth, biting onto his knuckle to keep a bit of blush from his cheeks and a giggle from his voice. Finally, after enduring even more of the dragon’s less-than-effective whining, Ailmer pushed open the door to the mill. He sighed a bit, the large grindstone waiting there for him as he walked over, tossing the bag into the trough. His smile weakened a bit as he looked at the work in front of him, before he bent over to slit the bag open, dragging it to distribute the wheat berries into the circular trough. He waved the dragon over, the drake huffing softly as he looked away. He kept his chin high and proud as the human pulled the sack off his back, the green drake flicking and rearranging his wings a bit. Ailmer turned and shook his head slightly, hiding his smirk in his work as he emptied the wheat into the other side of the trough, reaching up to give the grinding wheel an exploratory push. Beroan huffed again as his protests garnered him no extra attention. The dragon rumbled to himself softly, stepping off to watch haughtily from a bit further away. Ailmer shook his head, focusing to discard his grin before he started working, pushing the runner stone around the mill with a huff. It didn’t take long before Beroan approached again, curiously following the human around as he pushed the stone, examining the machine. “That is odd… That crushes the wheat?” He asked, looking over the gristmill. Ailmer nodded quickly, still working as he answered between pants. “Yes. This design is good because it doesn’t require any gears - just push this big one, called the runner stone around in the trough there.” Beroan nodded quickly, glancing up at him. “Gears?” He asked, unable to keep the excitement from his voice. “Mhm. Wheels like this with teeth that press together. That lets you drive one and then the gear works the next in line, and so on.” Beroan nodded quickly, his brow furrowing. “But there are grooves on that wheel. Wouldn’t that make it a gear?” “Not quite. That meshes up with the furrows in the millstone below it - that helps grind the grain together and push the husk away from the flour. That reminds me, it looks like I need to re-dress that stone too.” He explained. Beroan nodded eagerly, poking his muzzle around as he carefully examined the machine, his tail wagging quickly behind him. He continued asking questions about it like an excited question, barely slowing down after Ailmer had explained every piece of the mill to him in depth. Soon, though, Ailmer wiped the sweat from his forehead. The heat from the late fall afternoon was oppressive, and even in the shade the work was hot. He slipped his shirt off, tossing it over a table to the side, before starting his work again. Beroan continued questioning him a bit, though he was quickly distracted by the human’s form. The human’s skin had a bright sheen to it after the work, and the dragon squirmed a bit as he watched the strong muscles of his new friend flex as he worked the mill. The dragon curiously padded around the mill behind Ailmer, drinking in the view of his back and the various scars scraping over it. He also made sure to get a rather good look at the human’s ass, though that was still very well hidden under layers of clothing. “Ailmer, where did you get those scars?” Ailmer winced, just enough that the dragon caught the movement out of the corner of his eye. He shifted his shoulders slightly as if he were trying to itch the slight swells from underneath. His head lowered slightly with a nod, settling himself against the handle of the millstone to take a break. “A rougher life when I was younger.” He explained away. Beroan blinked a bit, the dragon callously padding forward to raise his forepaw, reaching up to rub the pad of a paw digit along one of the thicker scars. Ailmer yelped, nearly jumping out of skin, spinning around to swat that exploratory paw away. “Hey!” He hissed. Beroan blinked, the dragon stepping back away from the human quickly, his eye ridge furrowed slightly with the unexpected reaction from the other male. He glanced up, setting his paw down a few seconds as he sunk back into a seat on the ground. Neither party offered an apology for their reaction, both of them settling down into their own feelings of confusion. Beroan’s thoughts settled with trying to figure out the human’s perplexing reaction to the simple touch. Ailmer simply shook his head slightly - whether at himself or the drake neither of them knew. Ailmer’s feelings were easier for him to figure out. The familiar touch had jarred yet another set of memories loose. That thick scar burnt with the agony that had caused it in days long past, the human’s jaw clenching up as he turned back away from the drake, his knuckles white around the grindstone’s handle as he wordlessly went back to his work. The awkward silence persisted for several minutes, tempered only by the rough grating of the working mill. Beroan set his curiosity aside for the moment; a nearly unheard of feat for him, but even he knew when to stop earning the ire of his peers. He was soon distracted yet again by the nearly mystical machine that Ailmer was working, his eyes watching the flour as the pure white powder shifted from the girt under the stone. His fickle attention was soon distracted by something else, to use a canned phrase, exactly like a dragon that had seen something shiny. His eyes flicked up to start drinking in the view of the shirtless human working the mill. He swallowed gently, watching how his muscles flexed as he pushed the heavy stone around the machine. He couldn’t help but admire the strange human’s form, his tail flicking slowly and lowly behind him as he began to carefully follow the human around on his path. Ailmer was too distracted by his thoughts to notice the predatory stalk that the dragon had begun, and Beroan huffed softly to himself, licking his lips slowly as his eyes traced over those immensely interesting scars and the flexing muscles under them. He squirmed slightly, the dragon shifting his hips slightly as his eyes traced down to the human’s ass. Beroan took a moment to eagerly drink in the view of Ailmer’s backside, another long, slow lick tracing over his lips before he made his sudden move. Ailmer yelped, jolted out of his melancholy thought as Beroan suddenly pounced him. He landed, managing to catch himself before the dragon playfully rolled him onto his back, bringing him face to face with the dragon’s leering, eager expression. His heart skipped a beat before he glanced down a bit - underneath the dragon’s swaying tail and between his spread legs, the drake’s heavy shaft was halfway from his vent. Beroan’s warm pads spread, his forepaw rubbing warmly over Ailmer’s pinned chest as the dragon leaned down a bit more, growling out, “Give me your cock.” Ailmer blinked a bit - he couldn’t deny his own arousal as the drake rescued him from his thoughts, his breeches tenting as he drunk in the view of the needy, horny dragon above him. His lips slowly pulled into a smirk while he squirmed slightly under the dragon’s strong paw. “Crystals, tromp my tail!” He hissed, the dragon leaning down to lick warmly over the human’s collarbone. Ailmer had to hold back a chortle, letting out a soft huff while the drake’s tongue warmly lapped over his neck. His heart thudded in his chest, the human reaching up to press one hand just under the joint of the dragon’s leg, the other suddenly tugging on the back of the drake’s knee. With a quick shift of his weight, the human expertly rolled the much larger drake over with an insolent, surprised yelp. The dragon squirmed under him, but Ailmer’s head dipped down in the same motion - biting down on the side of the dragon’s neck just as his back hit the ground. Beroan gasped, the dragon shivering under him with the sudden bite. Ailmer growled out audibly, tightening his grip down on his mouthful of scales. The dragon twisted under him, biting his lip as he squirmed, internally debating about the fight he seemed to have just lost. His thick draconic shaft throbbed, pressing up against the human’s leg as he shifted, the thick member suddenly rock hard. Ailmer growled again, letting his jaws free to give a long lick over the spot he’d just claimed, the dragon under him huffing loudly, before suddenly wiggling out from under him. Ailmer barely managed to push himself back up onto his feet as the dragon lithely squirmed out from under him. Beroan struggled to his feet, the dragon suddenly a bit confused by what had happened, taking a few steps away from the human as he took a moment to sort out his eager, arousal-tinged feelings. It was just long enough for Ailmer to get a wicked, lovely idea. Ailmer reached to the side, grabbing a short coil of rope off the wall. With a nimble motion, the dragon blinking a bit before his eyes widened suddenly in recognition as Ailmer deftly twisted a slip knot in the rope. Beroan blinked, glancing back and forth before he finally lifted off his haunches, hesitating as he tried to figure out where to go in the confined space… The hesitation was just long enough for a swift toss of the lasso to expertly slip over the drake’s head, cinching shut behind the dragon’s horns. Beroan roared out; it was a sound that lacked the real animalistic rage of an injured dragon, lower and quieter before it calmed into a growl that he barely kept from sounding too much like a purr. Ailmer’s face was split in an idiot’s grin, his eyes flashing as he gave the rope a tug back and forth, playfully tugging on the stronger dragon. Beroan tugged his head back and forth, pulling back onto his haunches, lifting his chin to force the human to stumble a few steps forward… Trying to pointedly ignore his erection aching between his legs, his hard cock drooling precum with his treatment. Ailmer regained his footing and growled, giving the dragon a rough yank forward to force him up in a similar manner towards. “So you want your tail lifted, dragon?” He grinned, forcing the rope down to try and push the dragon’s head down. Beroan growled back, tugging and squirming while he was brought closer. His tail flicked from side to side while his eyes glanced up from the position he’d been caught in. He was playing along, of course. Had he wanted to, he could have simply walked along and dragged Ailmer behind him.. But the painfully hard cock between his legs and the shivers that shot down his spine each time that rope slid over his neck scales left him no choice but to tug meekly at the rope. His eager growl mixed with Ailmer’s as the human tugged hand after hand of rope back, pulling the drake closer and closer. “Mngh, need my tail pinned between my wings.” He mumbled. Ailmer hissed softly between his teeth, spreading his legs slightly as he gave one more hard pull, finally dragging the ‘reluctant’ drake back into reach. He grabbed one of the dragon’s horns with his other hand to pointedly grind his muzzle forward, stuffing Beroan’s snout right into his own tented crotch. “What was that, dragon? Louder!” He demanded, licking his lips. Beroan groaned out, the dragon tugging back a bit to test Ailmer’s grip - each motion just forcing the human to tug harder and work the drake’s snout back against his throbbing tent. “I want you to lift my tail and ream me, human! Jam that cock as far down my tail as it’ll go and smack my ass while you ride me! Crystal claws, trod my tail, Ailmer!” Ailmer had to suppress a moan as the dragon growled his needs right into his straining tent. He huffed hotly, holding the drake’s head down with the horn as he slacked the rope, stepping down on it to force the dragon’s head down another inch or two to give him a free hand to finally free himself from his evil pants. A happy sigh accompanied the reveal of his throbbing shaft, the human grinning eagerly as he gave Beroan another inch or two of slack on the rope, just enough to let the dragon nuzzle up against his cock, a few warm drops of precum smearing over the dragon’s muzzle. “So you want this, don’t you Beroan?” He growled to the leashed dragon. Beroan shivered visibly underneath the human, nuzzling warmly up against the underside of his shaft. That warm cock throbbed against his muzzle, the texture of the human’s skin such an exciting difference from his experienced. The warm, exotic shaft throbbed against his snout, the dragon turning his muzzle slightly to slurp up, working his tongue at the base of the bobbing dick. “Yessss… I want that cock, now! Give it to me, grab my tail already, hunter!” Ailmer’s teeth clenched as he give a few more tortuously slow grinds over the dragon’s muzzle before he grabbed a horn and pushed the drake’s head away, keeping a tight hold on the leash while he quickly walked behind the drake, stroking along his side before giving the dragon’s ass a sharp smack, gripping the dragon’s tail base as the strike teased a groan from the quadruped. Beroan growled eagerly, wagging his ass as he felt the hand start to lift his tail. He flagged it immediately, grinding his hips back against the attentions to earn a sharp yank on the leash for his trouble. His cock pulsed between his legs, drooling precum in long, glistening strands over the dirt of the mill. “That’s right, lizard, kiss your forepaws for me.” Beroan hissed insolently with the term, but another tug on the dragon’s thick tail base goaded the dragon into bending his forend down. The human panted softly to himself, kneading over the dragon’s strong rudder as his hand slowly slid up the underside, working about halfway up before gripping possessively, forcing the dragon’s tail back down against his back as he choked up more on the leash, finally grinding his hips forward to slowly work his throbbing cock over the drake’s ass. Beroan whined hotly, trying to push himself back against the throbbing warmth of the human’s thick cock. “S-shards, Ailmer! Fuck me already!” He hissed. Ailmer gave the dragon’s tail another tug, spending a few more seconds pointedly not reaming the dragon to tease out another set of needy whines from the large dragon below him. Ailmer couldn’t keep himself from the drake for much longer, though. All the teasing was well and good, but as his tip worked over the dragon’s warm tailvent, he couldn’t hold himself back. “Grh, that’s a good horny dragon…” He growled, finally angling his hips forward, pushing into the dragon. The pair gave out deep, eager moans in sync with each other while Ailmer’s shaft slowly pressed into the dragon’s rump. Beroan leaned even further forward, arching his rump up as the human’s shaft slowly filled him out. Ailmer growled, leaning himself down over the dragon while he sunk in, gripping the drake’s strong tail tightly, keeping that limb pinned firmly to the dragon’s back. Beroan pressed himself back, greedily working himself back. “Yisss, give me that cock…” He rumbled happily, starting to pant. Ailmer growled as he hilted fully into the warmth of the dragons’ tight tunnel. He throbbed, leaning over the dragon’s back to pin the male’s tail to his back with his chest, leaving the human free to hold onto the drake’s hindleg. He braced himself, throbbing inside the dragon as he took a deep breath, suddenly starting up a rather fast rhythm. Beroan couldn’t answer beside a deep moan, turning his muzzle to the side to bite down on one of his forepaws and a shiver as Ailmer bent down to bite on the drake’s neck just above the taut rope collar. Beroan whined eagerly with the bite, grinding himself hard back against the human’s thick cock. They worked like this for quite a while, the human panting over Beroan’s neck scales and the dragon grinding back against the human’s thrusts, trying as hard as he could to take as much of the male as he possibly could. Ailmer’s hand reached past the drake’s thigh as well, his fingers curling around the dragon’s rock hard, dripping erection to work that as he pumped himself hard and fast into the male’s tight tailvent. Their embrace blurred into a mess of eager pounding hips and varied nosies of grunted pleasure. It didn’t take far too long, both males pent up by the teasing before their embrace finally came to a head. Beroan was the first to go, the dragon hissing out, barely able to vocalize, “S-Shards, yes, give me that cock!” As his shaft flexed in Ailmer’s fingers, the ridged dick pulsing in time with the spastic clenches of the cumming dragon’s tunnel. Thick seed shot out over the floor and the drake’s hindpaws in long, drawn out spurts. He shuddered eagerly with each powerful flex of his cock through his orgasm, the trembling dragon underneath Ailmer finally sending him over the edge. Ailmer shuddered, thrusting in as far as he could to hilt himself in the tight rump of the needy dragon below him. He hissed out through a mouthful of dragon neck, grinding his shaft in as he finally released. His knees trembled slightly as his cock flexed, pouring a powerful load into the dragon’s tunnel, the drake’s flexing rump clenching down along that cock while he poured shot after shot of cum directly into the dragon below him. The pair trembled and ground against each other, both riding out their intense orgasms while they pressed close against each other. Finally, though, it was over. The two males panted as they slowly rested in their afterglow, Beroan’s thick cock pulsing gently in Ailmer’s messy fingers, the human’s cock throbbing softly inside of the drake’s gently flexing vent. Both their knees trembled slightly against each other, the dragon’s tailtip slowly flicking against Ailmer’s chest. “Shards, Ailmer…” “Flames, Beroan.” Ailmer replied, “I need to trod on your tail much more often.” Beroan’s eyes twinkled, the dragon smirking warmly. “Mrrf. You do, though…” “Hmm?” Ailmer asked, glancing down at the dragon curiously. “Can we keep this in the bedroom?” He asked, giving a playful tug on the rope with a light toss of his neck.