I knew we had entered Barebone's territory when pearls and shells started to roll with the stones we followed.
The water flowed freely here, the chasm growing wider the more we followed it. When the trees started stretching into a canopy above, I knew that Barebone would be nearby.
I hesitated when I heard the rushing of water and saw the horde twisting its way to join together and pull inwards. Ari stopped with me and grabbed my head in his.
"I dont know if I can" I whispered to him.
"You don't know if you should" Ari corrected me "I'm here for you. I know you'll do what you feel is right."
There was no doubt about what I was feeling. It was mainly nerves, but excitement was there too.
I already knew what pleasure as a human was like with my mate, but deep down I craved for that same feeling in my natural form.
I wanted this but I was scared of what I was going to feel. Barebone was either going to reject my advances or make me doubt myself all over again.
I needed this to work for the sake of Ari and our future.
"I'll be around if you need me" Ari kissed my snout and made himself scarce to give me privacy.
I turned back to the twisting horde and took a deep breath before following it further.
Barebone was the first thing I saw when I emerged at the bank opposite him. Instead of sleeping or guarding the nest, he was happily adding large slabs of stone to it to build it up. He didn't even notice I was there when he had his back turned to push it into place.
My heart thudded uncomfortably and I felt my nerves shaking through me. I wanted this to work so badly. It had to.
I was going to go in bold and hope that he took the bait.
Barebone was still nudging the rock when I soared over to land on his nest. His hissing was the first thing that met me before he struck out in anger. I backed away in his blind attack, turning around so I could lay down and peer back at him.
"Scala?" he breathed when he realised I wasn't there to steal his territory "what are you doing here?"
I lifted myself, waiting.
"I don't think you understood me earlier" he chuckled and pushed me down "I said that if I mated you, not when."
I felt his claws on me, not retreating. They savored the feeling of my scales under his touch without moving.
I pushed against him, lifting again. His claws left me now so he could test my scent.
"What happened to your little human mate?" he said with a smile on his voice, moving to my face so he could lean down to it "is he waiting to throw rocks at me again?"
I huffed at Barebone's ignorance and rolled over to expose my belly to him, squirming on the stones.
For a male, he sure was making me irritated he wasn't going for the bait.
"Keep it up" he encouraged, sitting now to watch "you're doing really well, Scala."
I glared at his cheeky smile and got up to rub myself along him instead, twining around his body slowly.
I felt him take in my scent again when I passed under his chin, and laugh.
"Want to explain why you are trying to seduce me?" he chuckled when I sat before him and pressed my head under his chin "we aren't compatible. It would be a waste of my time."
"I need it to be a waste of your time" I growled at him now and bit his chin in frustration "I need to give the humans a viable egg so I can figure out what they want my children for."
Barebone's interest was on me now. His mocking expression was serious when he looked me over.
"You could have led with that."
"I thought all males thought with thier tails" I grumbled back to his amusement.
"It's just a bit insulting that you would want to waste my gift of life for something that won't even make it."
"And it's insulting you didn't want me under you to begin with" I pouted back with a glare before softening "I need this, Barebone."
He looked me over again, taking in the sight.
"Well?" he prompted when I didn't move "aren't you going to win me over? You are a female in season and I am a very generous male."
I felt my heart jolt at the acceptance and straightened up with a grin.
He was grinning himself when I flopped over again to expose myself to him. He leant over to breathe me in, but otherwise not touch me.
I saw what he was doing. He was going to make me work for his efforts like a wanting female would.
I could see he was enjoying the show I was putting on for him now that he knew the reason behind it and the permission he now had.
I felt his tongue run over me. He remained there before retracting with a hissing breath.
It sounded almost like rain; feral and shaking. It made something inside me yearn to hear it again.
I didn't move as he returned for more, hissing again when I sighed.
His claws found me to shove me down to the stones and keep me there. I heard him still hissing when he finally pushed himself against me with a loud snarl that shook the air.
I saw his wings stretch around to shield us when he snapped up my neck in his teeth and moved. I felt safe with his protection around us. He would make sure nothing broke us apart.
Barebone made sure I didn't move from where I was. He kept me pinned there and scanned the still waters for any signs of intrusion.
He was a lot more demanding than Ari was. He was also a lot stronger too seeing as he was in his natural form.
I liked feeling protected under his strong grip. Ari made me feel the same way when I was shifted.
Barebone let out a low growl when he finished, still not allowing me to move when he pulled back. He checked the surroundings while guarding me until he decided it was safe, pulling his wings from around me.
"Make sure you make this work" he spoke with a growl on the edge of his voice "you know it'll be viable when the scales turn around overnight. They'll be looking for that too."
"Thank you" I smiled back to him as he huffed and slipped into the river to soak.
I got up and shook myself off before doing the same, splashing the cool water over me to savour the sting it had on Barebone's claw and teeth marks.
Things were finally looking up now.
"Scala" Barebone spoke when I went to head to the bank "I'll be there to protect you if you need it, OK? Both of you. I like your human mate and his dumb lack of self-preservation."
I bowed my head to his offer in acceptance and giggled at his comment about Ari. I saw Ari arriving to meet me on land with a hopeful smile.
"We can find out now" I breathed to him and pressed my forehead to his face.
He still held onto me when he turned to look at Barebone who snorted out water and dived under the surface.
We left him be, making the journey back to the mansion in high spirits as our plan steadily developed.
Ari and I sat together at the dining table, planning our next course of action while he weaved together the spray of flowers in the vase in the middle.
Russet and Clay were here too, seated where they were last time. Russet couldn't take her eyes off Ari who was trying to make a flower horse she had requested. Clay smirked at me, dipping his spoon into the soup we had before us.
"It's good to see you have clothes on this time" he commented, slurping noisily.
I looked down at the dark blue dress with colourful spots on it and smiled.
It did seem to please the humans I was dressed like one of them when I was shifted.
There was a noticeable lump under my dress too. It created pressure inside me that felt like something was pressing down on me.
Human bodies weren't designed for things dragons did naturally. It wasn't painful, just uncomfortable.
But it was part of our plan. I needed the staff to see I was carrying what they wanted.
I was just like an expecting human female. It was the closest I had felt to motherhood.
It was a nice feeling to hold something so fragile inside me.
"It's good to finally meet your mate too" Clay spoke again, glancing to Ari "I thought you were going to keep him hidden the whole time."
"He's unsure of me" Ari told me without looking up from his flowers "he's trying to sus out what I am in this house."
"And he speaks Draconic" Clay added, impressed.
"And I speak Draconic" Ari smirked back to Clay who fell quiet, focusing on his food.
Russet squealed out when Ari passed over his feeble attempt at a horse. She dipped it towards her soup to make it eat and neigh in delight, trotting around where she sat as pieces fell from it.
"I'm Clay" Clay finally introduced himself and held out his hand.
"Ari" he replied, shaking it firmly.
Russet stood on her seat to shake Ari's hand too.
"You have good energy" Clay settled back down, glancing to me "there a lot you can tell about a person by thier energy."
Ari glanced to me for help.
"He's a witch."
"Ah."
"And she's a werewolf."
"Ah."
I giggled at his worried tone when he watched Russet bite the head off her flower horse then spit it into her soup to mix it with her fingers.
"Cute" he frowned at her when I stood to reach over to clean up the mess she was making.
Clay noticed my bump immediently and looked up to me in surprise. He then glanced to the carers lined on the walls then gestured for me to sit back down, sliding his and Russet's chairs closer.
"Since when are you p.r.e.g.n.a.n.t?" he spelled out in a whisper.
"Pwincest!" Russet exclaimed at what she thought he had spelt and threw her arms up in delight.
Ari moved closer on the other side of me so we were all gathered around my seat.
"Are we going to tell him?" Ari glanced at Clay who scowled back when he saw he was being talked about.
"It would be nice to have more on our side" I replied "we are already outnumbered enough as it is. And these children are what I care for most about this place other than you, of course."
"We should go somewhere private then" Ari suggested "there are too many ears and mouths here."
I glanced at the lined wall and nodded.
"The little one needs a bath" Ari pointed to Russet "you know the layout of this place, will you please guide me?"
I grabbed Russet to cradle her on my hip. Her leg pressed on my already tight middle to make me groan out between my teeth.
I needed to change back soon.
"It's this way" Clay immediently stood to lead us out of the room.
He kept up his brisk pace until we reached Russet door. Ari was about to open it when I shook my head.
"His room is more guarded."
Ari asked for the new route which Clay took us along suspiciously.
When we got to his room, he quickly closed the door behind him and started to clear his bed so I could let Russet go and sit on it.
"She can't be that far along already" Clay oggled the bump that had inched its way outwards since leaving the table.
It was starting to turn from uncomfortable to painful. I swear I could feel the skin stretching to accomadate the scaley egg growing inside.
Clay handed me a pillow to put in my lap while Ari rolled up my dress to expose the bump. Clay's fingers ran over it in wonder while Russet gasped and pointed to me before slapping her own stomach.
"Explain it all to him, please" I groaned to Ari as I got up from the bed to take Russet to the ensuit to run a bath for her.
I didn't make it deep, sitting on the side when she splashed about happily.
Clay listened when Ari ran through our theories and the one we were planning now. Russet was oblivious to the talk while she was in her own little bubble of happiness.
"I can see why you are taking such a drastic approach then" I heard him say "and she's obviously not far off now."
I felt my sides stabbing when my skin started stretching further.
"I'm going to change back" I moaned out and clutched my middle when I went running from the bathroom to the balcony.
The release of it all was blissful when I shifted out of the constricting human form. I quickly dropped to the ground, scraping together the pebbles into a mound that the egg could safely be nestled in.
But there wasn't just one. Minutes passed and another arrived, with another after that. Each one had clear scales that revealed the squivering red lumps connected to a network of veins. Each of them gradually had the scales turn upwards, making the pride soar through me.
None of mine had ever been clear. This must have been what a water dragon's eggs usually looked like.
But there were babies. Three of them too!
Instantly, I was in love. The thought that none of them were here for survival was shoved aside so I could collect them together with my tail and hold them close.
"Look" I breathed up to Ari before Clay joined his side with Russet wrapped in a towel "look at how precious they are."
"Scala" Ari smiled back at the sight "look at you."
I felt the tears of happiness run before I swiped them away.
"We need to keep in mind that we aren't keeping these ones" Clay spoke while I clicked to the eggs that quivered under the noise "this is for the future of the rest."
"Let her have this moment at least" Ari sighed back, turning back to me scratching up more of the pebbles to form a mound of a nest.
It wasn't my real one, but it was one that was visible to the humans and perfectly accessible. That's all we needed it to be.
Clay left to tend to Russet. Ari remained behind to gaze down on me lovingly.
I flew up to him and clung to the side of the building so I could stretch up and feel his soft kiss between my eyes.
"One day that'll be us for real" he murmered, looking down at the eggs "but with an actual baby inside you."
His eyes rested at my middle he stared lovingly at.
"You'll make a perfect mother, my beautiful mate."
"And you'll make a wonderful father" I grinned back, nuzzling my face against him.
He sighed and we looked over the beauty below together.
"You should let the world know, Mama" Ari smiled at me before it faltered "rip off that band-aid before it becomes too hard."
Already it was too hard. I didn't even have the chance to bond with my fated babies that had barely just come into this world.
"Let it out" Ari encouraged.
I released myself from the building to hover over my nest. The eggs quivered again when I climbed higher over them and circled.
Then I screamed.
It was loud and long. It was filled with happiness and anger and sadness all at the same time. I let all of my emotions tangle together when I circled there. The screaches of victory were lined with pain and longing.
I heard another return in the distance. It was confident and had no underlying sadness. Barebone had heard my call and wanted to support in the best way he could right now; by keeping his distance and guarding his own territory from the same fate I was facing.
And there was another. It was barely closer. It held pain but also celebrated the new beginnings awaiting it. It's mate joined in to amplify the call.
Another came as barely a whisper in the air, with more spiking up across the distance.
The only one that caught our attention was the one that pierced the air from the trees behind the mansions yard.
Ari gasped at the closeness of it and chuckled at our new-found neighbour.
Dragon calls speckled the air to support mine. It filled me with happiness and hope at the unseen force so willing to lift me up in this difficult moment.
Ari cupped his hands around his mouth to scream out into the air. The sudden noise caught me by surprise and startled me before making me laugh.
I screamed again, this time being joined by Clay and Russet who yelled as loud as they could with Ari. They all were drowned out by mine, but stayed persistant when the one nearby and others in the distance returned.
"What on earth is going on here?!" I heard a panicked voice come charging through "are you all OK? Are you hurt?"
I heard laughter as the only response and saw one carer rush to the tiny balcony while several more charged in after them.
"It's just me" I chuckled when they looked up at me "hello down there. That's got to be the fastest all of you have moved."
Ari snorted then tried to hold it in when the carers looked to him in confusion then to me in irritation.
"Down there" Ari pointed them to the nest.
"I wish it didn't have to be like this" I sighed, landing beside them to caress them for the last time "I really want to keep these ones."
"I know you do" Ari replied when the carers bolted from the room, calling out to each other "but we will keep the rest once we find out why these ones are so important to them."
I turned from him to focus on the tiny things below me. They still quivered away, reacting to the noise around them.
I desperately wanted to warm them but held back. They were cold to the touch and couldn't be around for much longer, no matter what I did.
Warming them would boil them. Cooling them would freeze them. I couldn't win either way; they were not meant to survive from a crossbreed so incompatible.
"People are so greedy" Clay muttered when the carers came pouring out of the house with Bee hot on thier heels.
"Mama" Russet whined when she saw the gathering, trying to grab me with her tiny hands.
"I'll be fine, Little Chick" I smiled up at her and awaited the mass to make thier decision on how to remove me from thier precious loot.
"Scala" Bee moved forward with a soft smile "look at you, Mama. We have to take those to keep them safe and alive; time is of the essence."
Bee stepped forwards again with a hand out but I snorted to stop him.
"What's wrong?" Ari frowned.
"If they want them so badly, they shouldn't forget that they can't chase me off like I'm not the reason they have them in the first place" I growled to the mass.
"She wants a trade!" Ari called out to them, relaying the information I was giving with a knowing smile "she wants back all of her horde you stole."
The silence was so loud. I saw carers look to each other while Bee thought over the information himself with a grin up to me.
"Deal" he nodded to some small compliants, turning to the disgruntled carers "dump all of your stolen crystals out here! Go! Go! Go!"
Bee clapped his hands to emphasize his point as the sea of black and white shrunk back inside. He shouted to the stragglers to remind them of the precious time restraint.
Slowly, they returned to nervously place down the crystals at Bee's feet and retreat. I kept the eggs guarded with my tail to make sure the trade was met.
More crystals piled below Bee. I was even amazed by how many had been returned back to me. It was a treasure trove right there, waiting to be added to my already grown horde.
The urge to tuck them safely away was undeniable. It pushed for me to abandon what I had been worried about earlier; calling to me.
Funny how some polished stone could shift my focus so easily....
"That better be all of them" Ari spoke without me needing to "you lot should be ashamed of yourself."
I heard the disgust in his voice as he threatened the gathering below. Clay had the same scowl on his face as Ari, while Russet peered at the crystals in awe.
"Any other requests, my dear?"
I bubbled at the affection and shook my head.
"The trade is accepted" Ari spoke.
Bee smiled at me and approached to place his hands on my face instead of diving down immediently for the eggs I unwrapped my tail from.
"Thank you, Scala" he rubbed my scales with his thumbs "I do hope I don't need to do this again."
"Same here" I agreed and stepped back so Bee could finally make his move.
He scooped up the first egg, the size of it needing both his arms to hold it up. He rushed it into the car, scooping up the second only seconds after.
I made use of the time, scooping up mouthfuls of the stolen horde to rush it to my room and dump it down.
Bee and I crossed past each other, each with our own importance.
When Bee had the eggs safely secured in the car, he waited for me to dump the last of the horde, picking up the tiny ones I had missed to throw them up to Clay and Ari.
This obviously dissapointed the carers. I could tell they were hoping for time to ravage the stones for anything I had missed.
"Back to work" Bee dismissed the carers as he rushed to the car "I'll be back later."
Clay, Russet, and Ari immediently rushed back inside the room. I flew up and dove towards them, using the momentum of the fall when I shifted to land in Clay's room and on his bed as a naked human.
"That was impressive" Ari marveled as he gave me his hand to help me up.
"We need to chase down that car before it gets away" Clay fretted and leant over the balcony to look at the red lights carefully crawling along the long driveway.
"What have you got in mind? You're the witch" Ari asked him.
"Yeah, let me just grab the four broomsticks from my cupboard" Clay bit back sarcastically but opened up his closet anyway.
I sat there, wondering if there actually had been some hint of seriousness in his joke just now.
He threw me a dusted blue hoodie and rummaged for some trackies that he stretched before throwing those at me too.
"It's going to be too obvious with a dragon flying after the car" Clay spoke, throwing another hoodie to Russet that she pulled on and laughed at when the sleeves swallowed up her arms and made her look like she was wearing a dress.
"What do you have in mind then?" Ari asked, watching him rushing around to collect items into a bag he pulled down.
"An alternative" Clay smiled, holding up a glowing jar proudly.
ns 15.158.61.8da2
