Forest Keep – Copyright Peter Ping 2005-7 all rights Reserved, all characters are fictional and bear no relation to anyone living, dead or undead, do not fold, spindle or mutilate. No dragons or humans were harmed in the making of this story and activities were monitored by the RSPCD. All dragons are over 18 and registered with appropriate draconic authorities. Other Characters that may appear do so with the express permission of their creators and no infringement is implied. No responsibility  taken by the author for mental anguish incurred neither for late updates or lack thereof nor for loss of employment caused by reading at your place of employment. No warranty implied or given. Batteries not included. In reading this story, you agree to submit sexual favors requested by any dragons you may encounter.



Chapter 1

      Water is an amazing element. In its pure form, it has no taste, no smell, and is in fact very unpleasant to work with.  What makes water enjoyable, is the minor impurities introduced though various sources. Bits of plants, soil, minerals and myriad organisms too small for the eye to see.  Some sources of water are more sought after than others, those typically being the ones less influenced by anything other then raw nature itself.
  Cill had just such a source, in fact it was one of her prized possessions, if one could possess a lake. It was fed by rainwater and melting snow from the nearby hills, filtered through the valleys and small streams to end up at this one shallow depression. 
      This natural cycle that saw the water end up at this very lake, the very spot she called her own, this incredible lake, which was now being intruded upon by a very bad smelling and disrespectful animal.
       A human, monkey, which ever you wished to call it was irrelevant at this point, what was very important was how it was splashing about in her water.
         The Dragon word for 'human' is more a combination of thoughts sounding vaguely along the lines of, disgusting, untrustworthy, irritable, crass, and most of all, dangerous.  These definitions now flashed through Cill's memory flushing away previous thoughts of her beautiful lake and how this creature was rapidly defiling it.
         Carefully her pace slowed, body lowering further to hug the ground. Silently her form crept though the low hanging brush until right at the edge of cover. She must remove this creature some way, but how?
       “It’ll take days to clear that stink out” she grumbled to herself quietly, not taking her eyes off the humans naked body as he swam about cheerfully in her placid lake, his horse tethered nearby cropping the grass and occasionally taking a drink itself.
	James relaxed in the warm water, floating on his back and enjoying himself after three hot days in the saddle, his clothes lay at the side of the pool drying in the warm sun. It would make a favorable impression to ride into the keep looking clean and refreshed rather than covered in travel dust and grime.

       He couldn’t shake a sudden instinctive sense of warning, the feeling that eyes were upon him, and none too friendly eyes at that, lying on his back in the water he let his gaze roam slowly over the woods surrounding the lake while he floated slowly back to the edge, closer to his sword should he need it.
       After a few minutes, he realized there was nothing there or at least nothing he could see. He climbed out of the pool, stripping the water off his limbs slowly and dried off in the sun, he stayed alert, though still not seeing the lambent slitted green eyes watching him steadily from the rushes.
	Cill’s gaze roamed slowly over the human’s naked form, resting on the well-muscled chest and flat stomach. She had never seen a human up close before and naturally was curious about them. Blonde hair traveled down his chest and belly to a small indentation she did not recognize then down further to his groin, the flaccid penis seeming rather puny to her eyes.
      Humans didn’t even have a sheath to protect and hide the delicate thing she snorted to herself, however do they get that into a female? She wiggled a bit as the thought of mating sending a sudden, secret thrill through her body, her tail twitching as her innards seemed to grow warm. 
      She did not know why she felt his way every time she thought of males recently but decided she would ask her mother about it later.
	James pulled his slightly damp clothes on and whistled his horse over; he would have to remember this lake. It was close to the keep and was private enough to clean and relax in without worrying about unexpected visitors. 
      Climbing into the saddle, he trotted off thoughtfully towards his new home, One of the best keeps for training, his father had said. He did not hear the quiet hiss of frustration coming from the pool behind him as the dragoness sniffed the water, swirling it about before slithering in with a sigh of relief.
       Cill soaked quietly in the lake and thought; her parents were a silent call away and could perhaps answer some of the questions burning in her mind. This was her private place though. How should she scare off the human so he would not come back with armed soldiers and ruin it all? 
      She sucked idly on a talon, a habit she had had since she was a hatchling and one her parents had been unable to break, her agile tongue curling over it as she pondered the problem.
      

James turned the corner and saw the massive Keep from the road. He paused gaping and impressed at its size and construction; it would take a major battering to reduce those walls.
      Slowing his horse to a walk, he approached openly so as not to alarm the guards and give the wrong impression, his letter of introduction still dry in its sealed packet in his jerkin. 
      The guards at the gates seemed friendly and unsuspicious, ‘a good start’, he thought to himself. He turned his horse in the direction indicated by the guard who had searched his bags and asked him his business. A single look at the seal on the letter had gotten him inside with a minimum of delay and he grinned to himself as he headed into the bailey and the main donjon


Cill fidgeted in her pool, unsure as to what was disturbing her. She sniffed and swam over to the area the man had spread out his clothing whilst he had been swimming. 
Her questing snout sniffed over the area until she found a small square of cloth giving off an odor that made her nostrils twitch.
       A squiggle embroidered onto the hanky did not mean anything to the dragoness but she sniffed it again... Musty yet flowery, not knowing what perfume was and the importance of a lady’s favor she wadded up the cloth into a ball and tossed it into some bushes away from the pool.
 Her nostrils flared again as she caught a hint of the human’s scent from the grass.
       It sent a confusing ripple through her body and she shook her head in bafflement... it was definitely time to talk with her mother...
      

James made a nervous bow as he stood before Sir Tarrant, “Squire James Laurence at your service Sir’ reaching into his jerkin he pulled out the message packet with its precious contents.
       “I have a letter of introduction from Prince Harold for you sir’.
 Taking the packet with a grin, Duncan Tarrant broke the seal and unfolded the letter, carefully reading it from top to bottom while James tried to prevent his anxiety showing. Resting his weight on the balls of his feet, he slowly looked round the room. 
      Trophy shields and weapons were apparent on every wall, obviously this man had never shirked a fight or duel. An elegant tapestry covered the bare wall behind the lords desk.
 Duncan folded the letter back up slowly and returned it to James.
       “So’ he chuckled “You want to enter your novitiate here?” he looked seriously at James, knuckles on his desk while awaiting his answer.
       “Yes Sir’, James replied enthusiastically, “I have only had limited training in arms as a squire but the Prince said I had a natural talent for fighting”.
       Duncan nodded “and also a talent for getting into mischief as well it would seem” he chuckled good-naturedly. 
      James paled a little; he had not read the letter and dreaded what was in it.
       “Er…There may have been a few incidents of over eagerness and error...” he stuttered, several of the ‘incidents’ running through his mind like dirty footprints.
       “But I’m sure nothing like that will happen here” he finished apprehensively, feeling beads of nervous sweat suddenly pricking his forehead.
       Duncan grinned, “I hope not, I expect discipline from my novices and if you are to be trained you will need to concentrate. No drunkenness, wenching or gambling are allowed during training periods” coming to a decision, he offered his hand.
       “Welcome to Guildford Forest keep son. Now go and find Martin down in the bailey, He’s the seneschal of the keep and will find you a room, show you round and explain things”
      
      

Cill splashed out of the pool and shook herself dry, the water sliding easily off her silvery scales. She always felt better after bathing. Making her way back to her lair she spied the small piece of cloth she had rolled up and thrown out, spearing it on a talon she shrugged and wandered home with it.
       Entering her lair, she stretched and wandered over to the broken speckled mirror she had found several weeks earlier. It showed an attractive young dragoness, silver-scaled with a fine pair of horns that swept back from her brow and added an aristocratic look to her head. 
      She checked herself over, swishing her tail round and making sure no loose scales marred the smooth surface of her body, stretching slowly as she turned and admired herself in the mirror. 
      She was old enough to realize she was attractive to males and her thoughts kept returning to the swimming human for some reason. She lit a couple of globes with a soft puff and moved to her bed of soft ferns and mosses, feeling a shiver of emotion she didn’t quite understand she threw a thought out to her mother.
       “Mama?” she murmured”Yes dear?” her mother replied. ”what is the matter? Not liking life on your own?”
      The soothing purr of her mother’s voice settled Cill as she wriggled into her bed, “I don’t know mama… I felt a little strange today... Sort of hot and itchy...” 
      Back in her own lair, her mother ran a paw down her snout with a sigh, so... her daughter was beginning to feel urges... This could be difficult.
       “What were you thinking about at the time dear?’ she asked cautiously as Cill idly traced a pattern in the sandy floor of her cave with a talon.
      “I saw a male swimming in my pool today and all of a sudden I felt hot and my heart was thumping”. 
      Carlina bit a talon in shock; there was a male after her daughter so soon?
 This would not do! She was still too young! In her confusion she did not think to ask the species of the male, assuming it was a drake who had visited her precious ones pool.
       “Did you say anything to him dear?’ she asked, dancing around the subject delicately, “or did he say anything to you?”.
       “No Mama... I was a little scared and hid so he couldn’t see me,”
Breathing a soft sigh of relief to herself Carlina relaxed on her own bed. Cill was her first hatchling with her current mate and she had felt a mothers worry when Cill had declared she wanted to find her own lair and make her way in the world.
      It had not been too long since she had left so Carlina still felt a twinge of worry now and then about her. “I think its time we had a chat about males and suchlike dear”, she murmured 
      “You were so eager to move out I didn’t really think about explaining it at the time”
 Taking a deep breath, she began to explain the fundamentals of dragon reproduction to an increasingly wide-eyed daughter
       “I knew a little about that mama”, Cill replied, thinking of the human’s penis. The first that she had seen other than fleeting glimpses of her fathers.
       “But why should thinking about it make me hot and shivery?” Her paws unconsciously went to her chest, caressing her firm breasts gently, feeling them sent those shivers through her.
      Carlina chuckled to herself “That is your body telling you its ready for mating...  some lucky drake is going to bump into you one day, be smitten with you and if things happen as they should- You will have hatchlings to care for and love”
      She tried to prevent the thought of how male drakes tended to react to a female in heat from slipping into her thought stream to her daughter, it could be violent and often involved more than one male vying for the right to mate.
      The victor often claimed his prize by force, if blinded by battle-lust and instinct or the female was inexperienced in such situations.
       Cill listened carefully and nodded to herself. Hopefully, the smelly human would not come back and it would be a drake that visited her pool next time. 
      Regretfully breaking the link to her mother, she yawned widely and settled onto her bed for a sleep, her dreams curiously full of the sights of the day while all unaware she clutched the squires hanky in a paw.
      


James soon found himself making a home in the Keeps barracks above the mess hall. Martin had shaken his hand in greeting and shown him to a small but comfortable room where a fire was burning and supper was waiting on the table.
Tiredly he stripped out of his clothes and hung them near the fire to finish their drying; giving a yawn, he settled into the bed and was asleep in minutes. 
      His dreams were curiously unsettled as he kept seeing a pair of intense green eyes, sometimes they seemed to be caring and laughing at him while at others they seemed to be sneering and harsh.

Chapter 2 

Cill awoke next morning feeling refreshed and looked around her lair, though spacious it was still bare and she felt it needed some attention.
       Looking down at her paw, she saw the wadded hanky within looking rather sad so tugging it off she placed it on her bed, thinking about the male human. Her curiosity was aroused about him, but giving a little shrug, she slipped out of her lair.
       He would not be back she thought before she went looking for something new to brighten her home.
      

James woke early as the light streamed in through the windows of his room, walking over to the basin he poured chilly water into it from the ewer and carefully washed, and shaved. He did not want to give a bad impression on his first day of training.
      Pulling on his newly dried clothing, he suddenly remembered something and fumbled hastily in a pocket... It was gone! The handkerchief Lady Caroline had given him as a favor before he had left for the keep.
      This was terribly bad luck, not to mention the fact he treasured the hanky as it reminded him of her graceful form, sultry voice and the scent of her perfume. 
      James searched rapidly through all his equipment and clothing, surely it was there somewhere! 
	Down in the Bailey a horn sounded to summon the novices. Cursing his bad luck, James ran down the stairs and fell in with the rest of the trainees who seemed a motley group of rough looking men who looked him over with interest born of boredom.
He was younger than most of them he realized and looked less beaten up. 
      ”Who’s this then?” someone asked quietly... At twenty James was younger than most to start serious training He realized he would be in for some difficult moments as the men took their measure of his ability, and rightfully so when the man you were training with today could be guarding your back tomorrow.
      

      Cill silently darted round towards the base of the keep. She did not usually approach this close but she was looking for something else like her mirror and this was where she had found it. 
      She looked up startled at the sound of ringing steel from within - had they seen her? 
      She relaxed when no humans appeared; looking over the junk thrown from the keep, she found a small table with three legs and quickly carried it away to her lair placing it in a corner.
       Some dragons could read and write and while she had a good education and could read some runes, she wanted to be able to learn more about herself and her magic, which was still weak at her age. However, it would grow the more she used it and as she matured. 
      She pouted a little at the speckled mirror, her hoard had barely begun but she told herself it would be better once she learnt how to shape shift and become invisible as her parents could do.
      

James grasped the sweaty hand offered to him as he lay on his back, winded.
      ”Ya over-extended your sword-arm again” the man chuckled, “ya don’ need to bury ya sword in my gut to kill me. Just deep enough so it doesn’t get hung up when ya try and pull it out” 
      Wiping the sweat from his face James nodded “I was trying too hard I guess” he chuckled. 
      “Tis a common error” the large knight said with a grin showing beneath the bushy mustache “I’m Joseph, Th’ keeps man-at- arms though ya can call me Joe”. 
      James shook Joe’s hand as they dismissed for the day. He had barely had time to register names and faces before they had started on the hardest training he had ever experienced.
      He was shaking with effort by the middle of the day and could barely lift his sword as he trudged back to the mess.
       “Damn boy” chuckled Joe “ya not have been worked that hard before? Ya’ll get used to it or keel over…”
       James nodded, “I expected as much, I’ll get used to it... I have to if I want to become a knight someday”
       Joe frowned a little, “Hope ya haven’t got the idea tis all runnin’ off doin’ good deeds an rescuin’ princesses from towers”
       James laughed as he took a drink of water from a flagon on the table “I’m not that young”, he chuckled, giving the man a punch on the shoulder. “Protecting the king’s roads and people is enough for me”.
      Tipping up the flagon, he poured the water all over his head, prompting a laugh from Joe whereupon he tipped another flagon over Joe’s head then danced out of reach as the man spluttered and laughed.
       “And who will protect the people from ya?” said Joe as he wiped his face clean. The water having cooled him off nicely “lets have some lunch and ya can fill me in on ya story”.
       James realized Joe was sounding him out for the others novices, and they would all know his history within a day or two
      Sitting in the mess, he told Joe a carefully edited history of his life in London, being taught to fight by his father and uncle and his aspirations of becoming a knight.
      He mentioned his father’s urgent desire of seeing him return a proper knight and gaining the hand of a fine rich Lady. 
      As a knight, he would receive a parcel of land and serfs to till it and grow crops. He could not do this in his current state of impoverished lesser heir. The youngest son of an earl had to work for a living these days, especially as he had two older brothers above him.
	Joe listened closely to what was said and what wasn’t being said. He could see the lad had potential. It was in his movements and accuracy on the training grounds but it would take a few years of battle practice and actual combat to hone the skills he saw. 
      “Lad, I can see ya tired, take the rest of th’ day off and let ya’self recover, walk the keep and learn th’ forests around as that’s where we do a lot of patrollin’”
      Joe put his tankard on the table and continued. “Bandits and highwaymen seem ta spawn alon’ with the mushrooms and there’s nothing like having a fat rich man complainin’ to the King about lawlessness to make things uncomfortable around here”
       James nodded tiredly and went back to his room. He suddenly remembered about his hanky and sat down, remembering his last day’s movements.
       The lake... his eyes widened as he recalled the dip he had taken before arriving, it wouldn’t hurt to check the spot. 
      There would be time for another swim too, he grinned to himself, walking painfully down the stairs he asked the groom to saddle his horse and swinging himself up he trotted off into the forest.
      

Cill pottered round her lair, plugging small holes in the wall with moss and making sure it was weatherproof with no leaks or seeps.
      She glanced out the door at the sun and decided to head down to her lake; it would be just the right temperature for a leisurely soak and swim.
      Carefully making her way down the hill towards it, she was startled to see the same horse cropping the grass while the human marched up and down the edge of the pool where he had placed his clothing the previous day. 
      She could hear him muttering under his breath as he stooped over now and then while brushing the long grass aside as if looking for something.
       Cill sucked a talon as she considered, her magic was weak but perhaps she could do something.
      Maybe if he found what he was looking for he would go away properly this time. She came to an abrupt decision; ducking down in a bed of reeds, she sent a questing thought out to the human.
      *Who are you and what are you looking for?*
      She almost burst out giggling as the human let out a yell and fell into the water, his arms windmilling in surprise. He sat up spluttering in the shallows and looked round frantically for the source of the mysterious voice. “Who’s there?” 
He sounded angry thought Cill, stifling another giggle.
       *What are you looking for?* she asked again, a little more quietly this time as James strode from the pool, wringing out his shirt and wiping duckweed from his hair. 
He was surprised and scared, voices from the air were not in his usual experience and he was a little unsure.
      “My name is James from the keep, I dropped a pocket handkerchief here yesterday’ he shouted as he looked round.
      Cill picked up a brief image of the small fabric square she had collected *why ever do you want that?* she asked, *It smells funny and doesn’t look useful at all* 
      Curiosity colored her tone this time and James decided there was no malice in the voice.
       “It is precious to me”, he explained, “It was given to me by one I hold dear”.
 Cill nodded to herself *If you find it will you go away?* she asked James. 
*This is my lake you’re getting all messy you know*.
       James picked up the feminine hint in the voice and let out a laugh “I’m sorry... I did not know it was yours... There were no signs... Why can’t I see you?”
       *Because I don’t want you to*, came the petulant reply. *Wait there and I will get your ‘handkerchief’ for you*
      James looked round slowly but saw no movement nearby. He scratched his head; this was turning into a very interesting day. His curiosity had been fired and was itching to get a look at who ever was addressing him.
      She mentioned the lake he thought to himself; perhaps she was a Naiad or water nymph. Or a sultry siren. Luring males in to be drowned in murky waters while they sought to make love to them.
      Suddenly his reveries were broken by another inaudible mental intrusion *I have your handkerchief… If I give it you back... will you stay away?*
      That doesn’t sound like an evil spirit seeking a soul, he thought, more like a scared woman wanting to be left alone.
       ”I shall do as you bid though how shall I repay you for finding my favor?” he asked the empty air aloud, feeling somewhat foolish as he did so.
       Cill’s acquisitive instincts suddenly flared up, she could ask for something nice for her lair!
       Her common sense overrode it firmly *Whatever you feel worthy*, she murmured back to him... “Now... You must close your eyes... and no peeking!”
       James fumbled quickly in his pouch, grabbing the first coin he felt against his fingers and placing it next to him. One of his few gold pieces lay beside him upon the grass, glinting invitingly in the sun.
       “Close my eyes?’ he thought to himself, she could do anything to him in that state. Still when one was dealing with eldritch powers that had seemed benevolent for now, it paid not to question them too closely or provoke them. Kneeling on the ground cross-legged, he closed his eyes.
      “Alright... I promise... no peeking,” he said, exercising a restraint that was usually unknown to him
      He took a deep breath and remained in place as something like a warm wind swirled around him. He caught a hint of a spicy musk as it wafted past while something fell gently into his lap. 
      He had to fight hard not to open his eyes, “alright . . . You can look now”
 Cill’s voice filled his head once more, his eyes snapping open he looked down, and there was his ladies hanky although with a large tear through the middle of it.
       Looking beside him, he saw the coin was gone and with a grin, he made a bow towards the lake.
       “Thank you my lady”, he called, “should you wish my services please leave some sign and I shall respond”
       Cill gaped at the shiny coin in her paw, her first piece of gold! She felt a surge of pride and thought about her response.
“If you see a black feather in the oak tree by the start of the road... will you come and talk to me again?”
      She felt it could not hurt to have a pair of ears and eyes in the keep. He had proven he could be trusted after all… and he had gold as well her mind whispered as her tongue flicked delicately over the precious metal, testing the quality.
      “I look forward to it my Lady,” James said “may I know your name?” he waited expectantly, fearing an answer wouldn’t be forthcoming as names had power over some beings.
      “I am Cidiliana Mor Dracalar” the melodic reply came, “but you may call me Cill… Now... be on your way…”
       James grinned to himself, an odd name yet elegant in its way, climbing onto his horse he clicked his teeth to encourage it to a trot and returned to the Keep
      Riding slowly and thinking quietly he recalled the oddly spicy scent that had wafted around him so lifting the hanky to his nose he took a sniff.
       Yes... That same scent was there too, displacing his lady’s perfume. 
      It stirred him in an odd fashion, making his heart pound, and chuckling to himself, he wandered back through the gates of the keep, water still dripping from his clothing as the gate guards snickered behind his back.
      
      

Cill lay on her back upon her bed, running the gold coin through her talons. Watching it glint in the firelight as she played with it.
 He had not seemed too bad for a hairless ape, she thought to herself, giggling quietly as she remembered how he had looked falling into the lake in his clothes.
      The coin had his scent on it also, more pleasant than the smelly cloth she had returned to him. Why would he pay so much for a piece of cloth? She wondered...Especially one that smelt so odd! 
      She smiled to herself and let her mind drift... Calling her mother to let her know the good news “Hello Mama!” she smiled mentally.
      Her mother smiled back warmly, wondering what had her daughter so pleased. Perhaps the male had returned.
       “I have gold!” Cill said with a note of triumph in her mental image
 ‘Oh my... Where did you find that?’ Her mother asked carefully.
      ”It was a gift,” Cill said proudly, lifting the coin so her mother could see it through her eyes, “the male gave it to me”.
Nodding to herself in satisfaction Carlina silently grinned; giving hoard gifts was a typical courting gesture by a male. However, rarely would they give gold at first but perhaps he was a wealthy dragon with a large hoard.
       “Is he nice dear?” she asked quietly
 “He seems to be. Although a bit clumsy. He fell into the pool when I spoke to him,” she giggled again at the memory.  
      Her mother frowned to herself. A drake should not be clumsy even when caught by surprise.
       “Well, just be careful of yourself and be nice to him, Even if he is clumsy”.
 Cill nodded, a little surprised at her mothers comments, be nice to him?
She gave a mental shrug and said she would before rolling under the soft coverings of her bed and going to sleep with her paw tightly clutching the gold coin while her dreams filled with James’s voice and his scent remained in her nostrils.

Chapter 3

Several days went past rapidly with James working hard to improve his fighting skills against the other trainees. He made friends swiftly with his good nature and mischievous attitude, though he had held himself down regarding that side of things.
      He realized he couldn’t get away with releasing a pig into the church here as he had done back home, laughing at the chaos caused by the panicked animal as it ran amuck amidst the startled churchgoers.
       Running through a complex series of practice moves, his mind wandered off to that day by the pool and his curiosity pulled powerfully at him. 
      Each day he looked at the oak tree on the road, hoping to see a black feather stuck to it somewhere and replaying the conversation over in his head to see he could detect a note of wistfulness or regret.
       He shook his head; he had kept his word and stayed away from the pool as he was asked, not wishing to incur the wrath of the being there in case she perpetrated some horrible magical revenge upon him. 
      He let out a curse as he slipped in place and lost his grasp on the sword, flinging it upwards and leaving it suddenly quivering point-first in the ceiling timbers 
      “Well, tha’s an odd place for a sword”, he heard a voice behind him say
 “Hello Joe” he chuckled “well one never knows when sticking a sword into a ceiling may come in handy” grabbing the handle he pulled hard, yanking the sword free.
       “What brings you slumming down here with us tyros?” sheathing the sword carefully he sat down, grinning up at his friend
       “Lord Duncan is havin’ a grand party in three days” Joe said “and he wants ya lot of ne’er do well’s to be good boys… Clean and tidy and on ya best behavior... if ya good ya may get fed too,” he added with a chuckle
       “As Novices, it’s ya jobs to guard the gates and escort the guests into the keep while we old fella’s have to lick their asses and make sure they feel at home”
      James laughed aloud at the thought “The only asses you’ve ever licked have been those of tavern wenches. Does this mean dress uniform and polished boots and all?” he asked, hating the hours of work it took to get the black boots to shine properly and the layers of clothing for full dress uniform.
       “Yes Lad, Ya’ll be on gate duty as official greeter for his lordship”, James flushed, “Me?” he stammered, “Yes ya. Ya’ve had the experience and know how to address a count from a viscount and a duchess from a countess, just don’ embarrass us…” 
       Joe slapped him on the shoulder and went out into the bailey once more leaving James alone with his thoughts, how many of those people would recognize him as the errant youngest son of the Earl of Cheltenham and who knew his reputation. This likely was not going to be pleasant at all...
      

Cill nibbled on her talon unable to concentrate for some reason, flipping the gold coin repeatedly in her paw as she thought about talking to the human again. Her mama had said to be nice to him after all and he was a neighbor, but it had been days and he had not come back. 
      She did not know why she felt disappointment at that but she felt something was missing; she kept seeing him splashing in the water, his smile and the kindness she had felt in him.
       “I’m just hungry,” she told herself, helping herself to an unfortunate sheep that had strayed too far and was now dripping hot fat into the fire. 
      She took several bites and swallowed, enjoying the warm flesh, she did not take too much food from the farms making sure she was unnoticed and uncommented on by humans. 
      Dragons did not used to have it this bad she thought to herself, rubbing her stomach, letting her paw slide down a little further than usual. She felt a start as she brushed her vent, letting out a whoosh of air at the feeling it sent rushing through her body. 
      Her lips were swollen and tender to the touch, lying back she stroked them softly with her paw, moaning quietly as she imagined them being touched by a male. 
      The image of James suddenly flashing through her mind, she sat up startled and partially disgusted with herself, how could she think that? 
      She wanted a drake not a smelly male human she told herself firmly. 
”Besides, he’s a human; he would probably faint with horror at the thought of coupling with a dragoness”. 
She imagined the scene and giggled to herself, her paw returning to its rubbing as her imagination took over. 
      Biting her free paw to keep from crying out she shuddered as a ripple of orgasm made her quiver, her questing paw suddenly wet with her juices. She lay back on her bed, a crystal tear running from her eye as she found she regretted not talking more with him. Wrapping her arms around herself, she slipped into slumber, trying to ignore the insistent thoughts clamoring for her attention.
      

James tossed and turned in his sleep, his dreams disturbed by intruding thoughts that seemed to roll over him in waves. He was unaware that a certain dragoness nearby was wrestling with herself over him, and that their brief mental contact had left him partially attuned to her. 
      Waking up with a start, he sat up straight in his bed. Then looking down he saw a large damp spot in the bed “Damn... No wenching allowed even in dreams it seems” he chuckled to himself.
       Stepping out of his bed, he picked up a soft cloth before walking over to the wash ewer and wiping himself clean whilst trying to recall his dream, it wasn’t like the usual ones of the fair Caroline.
      This one was a mix of green eyes, a spicy musk and a curiously rough yet sensual presence against his skin all wrapped up in a powerful surge of desire that he could not put his finger on.
       He sighed heavily, all this hard training, good food and thinking was not doing his hormones any good and he had at least 2 more years of his novitiate to go before he could consider trying for a knight’s position. 
      He stood in front of the mirror and smiled; he was more toned and stronger than when he had arrived and felt a surge of pride at his accomplishments so far. 
      Looking out the window, he saw the bustling staff of the keep preparing the roasting spits and fire pits. The keep dogs being lead out and fastened to the turn-spits.
      Tomorrow was the day of the party and he had to look his best. Returning to his bed, he pulled out his best pair of boots and began polishing them to a high shine. Occasionally spitting on them every now and then and rubbing the black oily polish into the leather until it glowed.

Joe chuckled as he watched James stagger down the stairs while trying not to scuff or break the polish on his boots. He nodded appreciatively as the young novice brushed his hair and shaved properly.
       “Nice bright mornin’ face soldier!” he barked loudly from behind while James was shaving with that unique sense of humor drill sergeants develop over the years.
       James just grinned and nodded “Yes Sir!” Snapping off a brisk salute that was only slightly marred by the foam from the rough soap he was using to shave with.
       Joe walked around him slowly “well done... Ya will be at the gate from midday; the guests will start arrivin’ about one after that... Be polite and courteous…and don’ rise to any jibes or comments mm?” he mentioned the last quietly, meeting James’s eye.
       “Yes... We know about ya reputation... And the pig in the church”, he chuckled, watching a flush rise up James face.
       “All in the past now Sir”, he murmured, “I’ll stay out of trouble”
      

Cill awoke with a delicious and powerful odor in her nostrils, it made her mouth water and she snapped it closed as she tried to track its source.
 Flaring her nostrils wide she scanned the area... the Keep! Delectable aromas of roasting ducks, chickens and various other farmyard animals were wafting over from the battlements. She left her lair and slithered quickly through the forest towards the tempting aroma until she could see the walls of the keep.
      She drooled heavily and slunk closer, set low on her silvery belly, trying to see what was going on. Her stomach rumbled noisily and she wished that she had taken another sheep home for breakfast.
       Making her way slowly round the keep she cautiously peeked from the forested area by the entrance. Her keen eyes lit on a figure at the gate and she felt a strange thrill run through her body. It was her human! 
      She looked him over critically, he seemed to be looking bored, either jogging on the spot or doing some sort of exercise. She let out a soft groan of mingled hunger and an abrupt welling up of desire that caught her by surprise, blinking in embarrassment she pulled back in case he had heard.
      She shook her head “I must be really hungry” she told herself, not wanting to admit to the leap she felt in her heart at seeing James again. She nibbled on a talon gently... how could she get some of the food cooking in the Keeps courtyard.
      Laying her head on her paws, she thought furiously, her gaze unconsciously returning to the infuriating human at the gate. 

James had felt the unmistakable pressure of a gaze on him and wondered why it felt somewhat familiar. He looked closely at the forest, checking for movement... unsurprised at seeing none he grinned.
      Perhaps he would get to meet his mysterious lady of the lake again he thought then sighed as he saw a ornately covered wagon approaching the gate.
      Standing to attention as the wagon rumbled up, he saw it was decorated with the markings of the church, ‘Oh no’ he groaned inwardly ’they didn’t invite the Bishop?’
       He sighed quietly and steeled himself as he approached the wagon.
       “My word, is that the young swineherd James of Cheltenham?” came an amused voice from within the darkened interior.
       “Welcome to Guildford Keep your Grace” James said, managing to keep his voice steady
      ”No small piglets tucked under your shirt? No sows following you in the streets?” the bishop murmured softly, enjoying himself.
       James felt the heat rising in his face as he tried to remain calm. 
“No your Grace, if you could please make your way to the end of the barbican Sir Duncan will be glad to make you more at home” 
      He could only vaguely see the fat face of the Bishop as he tried not to laugh, then with a gentle chuckle the cleric murmured “Thank you, young James… Keep up the good work”
      The driver tugged on the reins and the wagon rolled forward slowly into the keep. James let out the huge breath he had not realized he had been holding and sagged a little, propping himself up using the large ceremonial pike he had been given.
 If that was a taste of the day to come, it was not looking good at all. He had been rather troublesome when younger, and it seemed to be catching up on him all at once. 
      The younger son of an earl perhaps, but he still caught the flat of his fathers hand when a certain prank had inevitably been laid at his feet.
       How was he to know flour was able to explode if accidentally scattered near a fire or that you shouldn’t add interesting things to the alchemists potions while their backs were turned. It was not as if they actually produced anything useful after all and walking around with green hair for three months was punishment enough. 
      He snorted to himself and waited for the next carriage.

Cill lay in wait as she watched a succession of wagons, carriages and coaches slowly enter the keep. She could feel some of the confusion, shame and sometimes anger radiating off James as he greeted each coach formally according to its occupants. 
      Finally, it seemed the last coach had arrived and the great gates closed, leaving James alone with his pike in the dark. 
      Hungry and recovering from the barrage of insults, comments and humiliating references to his past he rested against the gates his eyes half-closed in relief.  
      Cill smiled to herself as an idea that had been fermenting quietly suddenly ripened in her mind. He could bring some of the food out to her... She was not greedy... A brace of ducks - a roast pig or two. Surely that wouldn’t be too hard.
       She realized she was drooling again and self-consciously wiped her muzzle with a paw. She concentrated a little and re-established contact with him and was startled to find it was far easier this time. 
      ”Hello James” she half-purred at him, muffling a giggle as he fell over his pike in shock, seeing him look wildly around the area before staggering upright again.
       “Is that you Cill? My lady of the lake?” he asked quietly back once he had regained his composure, straining to see in the night.
       “Yes” she replied, “I was curious as to what was happening at the keep tonight”
       He shrugged a little as his eyes went back to scanning the forest edge “All the local lords and ladies are meeting to have a party, dance and get drunk then there will likely be folk singing and bawdy stories told as well” 
      He sighed, letting a not-so-subtle tone of self-pity enter his voice “and I’m stuck out here on guard duty all alone”.
      Cill did not understand much of what he said, what did he mean by getting drunk? Or dancing? In addition, what were bawdy stories? She only knew he was not happy.
       “Aren’t they going to let you eat and drink too?” She asked him quietly.
 James sighed “later on when they’re all asleep or in their cups. Ill get some of the leftovers” he shrugged “I’m the newest here so I pulled the gate duty. All the other guards are inside enjoying themselves”
      He leant forward to where he thought she was “I’m glad you’re here to keep me company though”
       Cill let out a surprised hiss that she swiftly muffled. He was glad she was there? Why, he did not even know what she was. 
      ”Why don’t you sneak in and try and find us both some food then?” she suggested to him. ”It does smell rather good... I’m rather partial to roast duck.”
       James grinned, “So am I” he chuckled, thinking to himself ‘so she eats normal food, perhaps she’s not a spirit or nymph after all’ 
      James opened the gate a crack and looked through cautiously, making sure the coast was clear, it was certainly late enough in the evening that all the guests would be busy inside with their feasting and drinking.
      “If I’m seen to be away from my post I’ll get into trouble” he murmured to her “but as it’s you I’ll see what I can do” 
Cill grinned to herself as she watched; perhaps humans were not so bad after all. 
        James shook his head as he crept towards the fire pits, what was he thinking? If Joe or one of the other guards saw him, he would be for the high jump in the morning.
 Nevertheless… he told himself, there was a hungry lady to be fed and he was merely performing a charitable act that was worthy of a little risk. 
      Sneaking along the edge of the wall carefully, he found what he was looking for. A large skewer bearing a brace of plump roasting ducks and another, bearing a pair of fat geese were lying just above the glowing coals of the brazier.
      Leaning down he tried lifting them from the fire pit then after sucking his suddenly burnt fingers, he tugged a leather glove out of his pocket and swiftly liberated the food, skewers and all. 
      He was just about to leave when he spied a large flagon of wine cooling in a water trough nearby; grinning, he grabbed it, juggling it into position atop the animals and staggered towards the gate. 
      He suddenly froze in the shadows by the gate as he heard Joe wander past…holding his breath he watched as the old knight walked up to the wall and relieved himself against it noisily.
      ‘Don’t let him check on me,” he prayed silently to any gods that may have been listening. Joe looked at the gate and seemed about to turn towards it when he was distracted by a raucous laughing from within the mess and the sound of crockery being broken, likely over someone’s head.
       Joe sighed and after tugging up his breeches headed back towards the hall. James grinned with glee as he walked up to the gate with his booty and kicked it open to step out into the dark night. 
      “Your servant returns” he chuckled to Cill while waving his prizes in triumph.
 “Which would you like - Duck or Goose?” Cill’s head came up as she watched from the forest
 “Oh goose…” she murmured mentally to him, looking at the plump birds on the skewer and feeling her mouth fill with saliva again. “Would ... you close your eyes again?” she asked still unsure of how he would react. 
      “Certainly Milady” James said, holding the spit with the geese in front of him and closing his eyes. Once more, he felt the warm wind and spicy scent brush past him and the skewer gently tugged from his grasp.
      ”You are certainly fast” he murmured while seating himself with his two ducks and flagon of wine “Would you like a drink of wine to go with those geese?” he asked the unseen presence.
      Cill paused in her eating, she had not heard of wine before “what is it?” she asked curiously.
       “You don’t know what wine is?”
 “If I knew… I wouldn’t ask would I?” came the tart reply.
He chuckled to himself ‘oh yes’ he thought, definitely female “it’s a drink; it goes well with hot food and is made from grapes… Here”.
      He took a large swig from the flagon and swallowed it... “Would you like to try some?” putting the bottle in front of his impromptu meal he closed his eyes again and waited
      There was a brief swishing sound and he opened his eyes again, the flagon was gone “hey... not all of it” he complained with a laugh, “This is certainly one of the oddest meals I’ve shared with a lady”. 
      Cill sniffed the flagon and tilted it a little, tentatively poking her tongue into the opening and blinking at the odd flavor “Ewww…it tastes like fruit gone wrong”, she threw back at James, then she tried a little more.
       It did seem to go better with the goose though. James tried to make out the source of the sounds of eating. It did not sound at all well mannered and the loud glugs of the flagon were not helping either.
       “Er... May I have some more wine too?" he asked holding his hand out and closing his eyes, there was another scented breeze, and he was suddenly holding a substantially lighter flagon
      ”Did you drink all that?” he asked with a grin... Cill carefully masked a burp as she finished off the other goose.
      “It does make goose taste good, though it tastes funny and makes my head spin” 
“You shouldn’t drink too much at once,” he murmured to her “if you aren’t used to it, it can make you dizzy”.
      Cill lay on her back sated, rubbing her full stomach. The wine making her head spin pleasantly, relaxing her usually keen instincts.
      “Is there anything else I can do for you, my lady?” James asked with a smile in his voice.
       “Mmmm…not yet” he heard a purring rumble in his head “why don’t you come and talk to me some more tomorrow. I think I owe you a swim for letting me share your meal with you”
       James grinned as he detected a slight slurring in her thoughts, he was still wondering as to what she was, certainly he had a lot to think about come tomorrow.
      “That would be most enjoyable. If I can get away I shall see you around midday.”
      He finished his ducks, carefully burying the bones and hiding the skewers so as not to reveal to the returning guards that he had already eaten. 
      He lay back against the gate and smiled, her voice had sent a delightfully sensual shiver through him, especially that throaty purr…
      
      
      Cill made her way home somewhat less than gracefully, still feeling light headed from the wine and trying not to giggle as she thought of the conversation and odd meal she had just had shared with the human.
       She would have to tell her mother all about it and slipping into her lair she lit the fire and settled into her bed. 
      “Mama?” she called out sleepily “Hello dear”, Carlina replied, “have you had a good day”
       “Oh yes Mama, I went and saw the male again today. He fed me roast goose and something called wine that tasted funny at first but got nicer the more I drank” She wriggled a little under the cover.
       Carlina smiled, it sounded as though her daughter had attracted a good healthy drake that could provide for her though she had no idea what wine was either.
       “I invited him over tomorrow for a swim in my lake,” Cill murmured, not realizing she was setting the scene for a disaster of gargantuan proportions.
       “Does he make you feel good dear?” Carlina asked hesitantly, not wanting to probe too much but finding herself naturally interested at her daughter’s suitor.
      “Oh he has been very polite and pleasant ...but sometimes I dream about him and wake up all hot and confused and I don’t know if I should be feeling this way about him”
       Carlina could feel the confusion in her daughter’s thoughts and wanted nothing more than to rush over and comfort her but restrained herself.
       “Its only natural you should feel that way dear... Let nature takes it course” strangely enough this did not seem to help as Cill felt a wash of confusion run through her and she broke the contact. 
      She sniffed a little...he was nice. Nevertheless, she was a dragon though and he would likely scream and run away if he saw her for what she was. She gnawed a talon furiously as she thought; if only there was some way, she could get to know him better without scaring him off! 
      Part of her mind rebelled at this but her heart fought back with a surge of raw emotion, she felt linked to this strange human somehow and it felt right…as if something was meant to happen.

Chapter  4

James awoke after a good nights sleep with the memories of the odd night still strong in his head. 
      He then remembered she had invited him back to her lake but he was torn between the knowledge of his growing attraction to this mysterious person and fair Caroline back home.
       He had realized that he had left Caroline’s hanky on the bench instead of wrapping it around his sword pommel for luck as he had promised her he would do. Despite this, he strangely felt little guilt.
      James slowly dressed in his training armor and thought about the dinner; surely, the noises he had heard while eating didn’t come from a small lass.
       Nor could a small lass drink almost half a flagon of wine in a couple of minutes, he racked his brains trying to think of a mythical female spirit who could do both as he made his way down to breakfast.
      While deep in thought he bumped into Joe on his way up the stairs “Ah there ya are lad, well done on the gate yester eve, seems the folks comin’ in were mighty impressed ya could be trusted with some responsibility now”
       James grinned back “It wasn’t easy, but I managed to restrain myself from exacting immediate justice for the varied assortment of insults” then remembering he was supposed to be hungry “Is there any food left downstairs?” he asked “I’m starving..”.
       Joe grinned widely “I’ve thought those ducks and geese would have filled ya up” he replied with a sly grin. James groaned softly as he realized he had not been as careful as he had thought he had. 
      “Relax lad, though ya don’t look that fat. How on earth did ya manage to eat all of them?”
       James flushed but thought quickly as he realized that telling Joe he had shared his dinner with a magical sprite was asking for trouble.
       “I shared them both with a passing woman” he admitted, “She was hungry and thirsty... It was really charity”
       Joe nodded slowly and looked at James with a grin “I know it can be hard and we all have skived off now and then… but I saw ya head right back to ya post after helpin’ yoursel’ when you could have joined the other guards and they would ha’ covered for ya so ha’ the day off... Ya look a little tired”, he said with a chuckle, giving James a slap on the shoulder.
       James grinned widely and headed down to the kitchens, it was time to find out a little more about his mysterious visitor. 
      

      Cill awoke with a yawn and a heavy head, groaning softly as she lay in her bed. She sleepily rubbed her eyes and wondered at the cause of the soreness. Her eyes flew open as she remembered the evening before and inviting the human back to her lake, had she been insane? What had she been thinking of! 
Rolling off the bed, she stood up with a groan and clutched her head wincing at the throbbing pain.
      Drinking some water seemed to help but her head did not clear for some time so she avoided the sun and remained in bed muttering confusedly to herself.
       ‘What if he comes? What if he doesn’t?” her feelings vacillated back and forth until she had worked herself into a fine frenzy of emotions.
      ‘He’ll want to see me... I know it... it will all go wrong’ she thought, a tear running down her snout until she dashed it away in anger. 
      ‘So what... if he wants to see me... I will let him... No... I can’t...” she wrung her paws and paced up and down her lair, kicking at the walls in sudden fits of emotion... ”I’ll go down to the pool and swim for a bit... if he shows up... then we will see” Wiping her muzzle with the back of her paw, she stormed out of the lair, heading for the lake. 
      

James patted his restive horse on the nose, feeding him a piece of apple before catching him by surprise and swinging a couple of heavy saddlebags over his rump.
      He grinned as he looked at them both, one bag was stuffed with as much food as he could manage to cram in while the other bag held a nice colorful blanket he had found in the market.
      It would make a nice gift, after all, he told himself, its not everyday one gets to share ones meal with a magical being
      Tying another flagon of wine to his pommel, he climbed into the saddle and rode out the gate after telling the guards he was off for a picnic.
      They laughed raucously and told him to be back before sunset or else he would be picnicking with the bandits of the forest for the night. 
The weather was fine and clear and James slowly trotted his way down the path. He thought about all the things he had heard and tried to assemble a picture in his head of the lady of the lake. 
      It was not looking pretty. He had decided she must be an ogre if she could manage to eat and drink that much and could remain hidden. He shrugged at the image and thought to himself ‘well, even if she is an ogre… She still has good manners and is modest’. 
      He could not seem to shake the image of laughing green eyes, though they did not look like human eyes sometimes but seemed to shift between round pupils and oval slits. 
He arrived at the pool at noon, whistling quietly so as not to alarm anyone by sneaking up on them. Tethering his horse to a tree and removing the saddlebags he walked to the lake, sat down and opened one carefully before spreading out the blanket out on the grassy edge.
      Reaching into a pocket he pulled out a black scarf and laid it beside him “are you there Cill?” he called out quietly, opening the other saddlebag and pulling out the carefully wrapped meats he had coaxed from the kitchen hands “I’ve brought us a picnic” 
      Cill cowered in the rushes, hearing him only brought back the fear of rejection; she did not expect his next words.
      “I know you don’t want me to see you for some reason so I’ve got myself a blindfold.” lifting her head cautiously she saw him carefully wrap the wide black scarf firmly around his eyes and smiled to herself.
       “That’s considerate of you,” she murmured to him.
 ”If you aren’t comfortable with me seeing you, that’s alright.” James added, “I won’t pry if you don’t want me to” 
With her curiosity overcoming her worries, Cill asked, “So what is a pick-nick?”
       James patted the blanket “An outdoor meal with a friend” he said with a grin. Cill’s stomach growled a little at the thought of more food and she prowled closer until she was on the blanket and testing it with her talons.
       James felt her sit on the blanket and smiled at her, wishing he could see but not wanting to risk the progress he had made with her.
 “I brought some more goose and some bacon. And some more wine” he said with a grin “though I expect you had a sore head this morning from drinking too fast last night” 
 Cill nodded then realized he could not see the movement “yes... does it always do that?” She asked, looking at the flagon on the blanket.
      “No, only if you drink too much too fast, you are meant to sip it slowly”.
He laid the packets of food on the blanket and unwrapping them slowly spread them out so she could choose.
”Help yourself,” he murmured, his hand fumbling slowly for a piece of chicken and bringing it to his mouth.
       Cill relaxed a little, as he obviously could not see her. She lay down slowly on the blanket and gently selected a piece of bacon, chewing on it carefully as she looked at the human more closely than she had ever thought she could.
      ”So why do you live out here alone Cill?” James asked quietly before taking a sip from the flagon and putting it back onto the blanket. He could feel her near and something in him yearned to reach out and touch her but he gently put the meat in his mouth and chewed whilst waiting for an answer.
       “I have only left home recently... And wanted a place of my own to live in” Cill replied while reaching down for another piece of meat 
      “But there are no houses or farms nearby” said James “just the keep... Surely you feel alone and vulnerable out here?”
       Cill munched on the bacon and replied, “I have a nice home, and no one tends to bother me... just strange wanderers who blunder and fall into my lake”
       He could hear the humor in her thoughts and suddenly realized she could eat and still speak with him at the same time. Cill shifted on the blanket and realized she had many questions she also wanted to know the answers to.
       “Why are you at the keep, and what do you do there?” she asked and reached down for another chunk of bacon “You all go in, funny noises come out”.
       James laughed at the thought “We are training to be warriors, to protect our people and homes in the service of the king so after two more years I will able to apply to be a Knight and have my own land”.
      He could not see the shocked look that appeared on Cill’s muzzle as he spoke.
      “A Knight… One of those humans in armor that go round hunting dragons and suchlike?’ she heard herself ask, feeling an angry surge suddenly growing in her.
       “I’ve never seen or met a dragon” James replied, hearing a curious edge in her voice, “and I don’t think I ever shall. Nor would I kill one unless I really had to”.
       He blinked under the blindfold, had she said ‘humans’ as if it was a curse?
Cill’s talons curled in the blanket, ever since her birth she had heard tales from her mother all about the roaming killer knights that had once threatened the survival of dragonkind. 
      Until the dragons learned to use their magic to protect themselves from sight, no dragon had been safe from them and now her... this human was proud of being one!
      James could feel the tension as the blanket moved under him. She was larger than he was, he was sure of that. Her breathing was stronger and a curious spicy odor filled his nostrils, making him feel suddenly nervous and yet arousing him at the same time.
       “So what would you do if you met a dragon” Cill managed to say. She felt swamped with conflicting emotions. How dare this puny mammal cause her such feelings?  Only the fact he had shown her respect and consideration prevented her from shredding the impudent monkey, or so she told herself, as her talons flexed in the fabric of the blanket.
       “The stories say they are intelligent and graceful” James responded, “I would certainly enjoy talking to one and hearing about their kind... but I know I’ll never meet one” He gave a sad shrug, and took another swig from the flagon, putting it down lightly on the blanket “If I’ve said anything to upset you. I apologize, I don’t intend offense”
      Cill’s eyes half closed as she considered and not thinking, she reached down for a piece of chicken at the same time as James, her paw suddenly covering his hand with her palm, flinching it back she looked at the surprise on his face.
      The brief leathery caress had been warm and soft, yet not like the touch of any hand he knew, and trying not to tremble he said “well… That was pleasant... I’m glad you like me enough to touch me …”
      He did not tell her that his shaft had suddenly jumped in his breeches and that he was just as shocked as she was. Cill rocked slowly from side to side, the touch had sent a similar shock running through her entire body and she wanted to moan and hide... she didn’t know what to do. 
      “I don’t know why… But I believe you... and trust you”, she managed to say, trying to keep a tremor out of her mental voice.
      He had put himself at her mercy, she could kill him with a blow yet he sat there blithely eating his damn chicken and drinking his funny tasting wine. Her paws flexed as if trying to shake the feeling of his touch off them. Her emotions in a mess.
      “I-I’ll be back in a few minutes” she said trying to get some space to think. 
He felt her flee and rubbed his hand, trying to visualize her touch again, he was sure he was close, but just lacking some vital clue as to her form. 
 
Cill flung herself into her lair and jammed the door behind her where she let out a roar of confused pain and kicked the walls until they were shredded, hot tears pouring down her snout. Trying to gather her thoughts, she cursed to herself ‘how dare he!’
       She rubbed her paw, remembering the thrilling shock of contact and how it had felt to her, it could not be right. How could she be attracted to a smelly hairless monkey, especially one who would one day go out and kill dragons? She was not going to tell this to her mama that was for sure.
       She was embarrassed and hurt and... Moreover, she would tell him he had dinner and a pick-nick with a dragon and watch his face...No... She thought, he would go get his friends and hunt me down... then she felt even more foolish. 
      ‘No... He wouldn’t... and you know it...’ she told herself, wiping her eyes with her paw she sniffed, better to drive him off and never see him again, she felt an almost tangible pain at this thought and moaned again, rocking from side to side in confusion.
       ’Don’t let him know... he thinks your something else...’ she muttered to herself as her turmoil reached a peak, broadcasting itself in a muted form to James in the field. 
      He wondered why she was so upset, had he really caused her such pain with his words? What had he said? 
      
      
 Carlina sat in her own lair, suddenly alert to her daughter’s distress, what had happened? She debated briefly with herself, should she intervene and disturb them or should she bide her time? 
      Coming to a decision she touched two of her fore claws together and vanished, not even Cill could see her if she chose not to let her, swiftly walking to the travel portal and muttering the spell, she transported to the portal outside Cill’s lair – it was a short invisible flight to the lake from there. 
      James waited patiently at the lakeside and absently played with his blindfold while he ran their conversation through his mind “So she doesn’t like knights” He sighed to himself. ‘Maybe she is a fugitive and hiding from the law and is afraid I’ll turn her in?’
 	As he took another swig from the flagon there was a large bump nearby, feeling it through the blanket he turned and foolishly tried to see past the blindfold.
       “Cill?” he blurted without thinking.

      Cill breathed deeply trying to calm her rampaging emotions as she lay on her bed and wiped her snout. Why did he cause her these feelings in her? He was nice for a human, at least nicer than the humans she had heard tales about. She shuddered to think what her parents would say when they found out.
      Her eyes widened at the thought of her father if he found she was entertaining notions of mating with a hum... No... She was not thinking that, that was not her. 
      She recalled her gentle touch on his warm hand, how it had made her feel.
      Her loins gave a quiver and she moaned again, trying to think how to deal with the mess of her emotions and her body’s urgent desires.

Carlina surveyed the lakeside, taking in the scene and blinking slowly in alarm.
Cill was nowhere in sight and there was a scrawny human at the lakeside with his eyes bound up. She did not know why, but who knew why humans did things anyway. 
      Then the human turned around and said “Cill?” her eyes flared wide with alarm, how did this one know her daughters name- And so casually?
       Her eyes flicked swiftly to the basket and the remains of the food and it all came crashing in on her. Her talons flashed and with a dangerous growl, she reached down, scooped the human off the blanket, and pulled him up in front of her snout.
       “Where is my daughter Human?” she sent the mental probe at him, painful in its intensity. Caught by surprise, James tried not to scream as he felt himself grasped in powerful claws and lifted bodily off the ground by the angry dragoness.
      He found his arms pinned at his sides so he was unable to remove his blindfold, hot meaty breath washed over him as he heard the demand in his head, struggling to reply, he stammered.
       “S-she went off... she said she would be back, please...” 
Carlina hesitated, it would be so easy to rip this ones head off and dispose of the rest but she had never been a casual killer.
“Hold still human”, she ordered as he looked down at him.
      James felt dizzy as he found the last few weeks of his life suddenly replaying in his head. All the way from his first swim in the lake, through his training and the encounters with Cill. 
      He was startled to find how much he remembered about her - this must be what they mean about your life flashing before your eyes just before you die, he thought to himself.
Carlina was shocked at what her mental probe showed her, unwittingly and innocently this human had done everything a male drake would have done when courting a dragoness.
      He had left his scent in her pool, marking her territory; he had given her gold and even fed her from his own paw - hand she corrected herself. 
      There was no malice in him toward her daughter so she loosened her grasp a little and considered her next move.
       “Who are you?” the plaintive thought came from the human.
 “I am Cill’s mother” the growling reply in his mind rasped “and what are you doing to my hatchling to make her so sad?”
“H-hatchling?” stammered James, his mind suddenly making several important connections that shocked him to the core “S-she’s a Dragon?”


Cill came to a decision in her lair, she would tug his blindfold off and see how he reacted, if he screamed and ran off... so be it... she quivered a little as she thought.
 “But what if he doesn’t run off.. Will he want to touch me?” she switched talons in her mouth and gnawed frantically, unaware of the scene unfolding at the lake.  

Carlina grinned to herself, he wasn’t even aware of that fact? She cancelled the invisibility spell with a wave of her free paw.
      “Yes Human. My Hatchie is still young and foolish; else, she would never have spoken to you... For you represent the terror of the knights”
      Reaching up her free paw, she hooked a talon and tugged the blindfold off.
 James blinked in the bright sunlight and found himself looking up at twin cannons of nostrils. He thought he could even see the little pilot flame at the end, his gaze traveled upwards. 
Suddenly meeting a pair of angry slit-pupilled purple eyes, it was all too much; he sighed and passed out in her grasp. 
      Carlina humphed and wondered what to do with him, raising her arm as if to hurl him away into the forest, she suddenly felt it stop. There was a swirl of mist nearby and her mate Nokala appeared beside her. The male silver dragon had also been watching with mingled amusement and interest as he held her arm down with his own paw.
      “Hold dear... Let us not be too hasty”, he murmured to her, “Think about what we have found here...”
       Carlina growled back at him, “He is a knight in training... a killer of dragon-kind!”
Nokala nodded, “and one who is fascinated and perhaps even now bonded to our daughter, maybe this will lead to a greater understanding between humans and dragons...”
      Carlina gestured with the unconscious novice dangling from her paw “He didn’t even know she was a dragon until I told him”, she growled.
      ”That was because he was looking with his heart instead of his eyes”, replied Nokala honestly, the comment cutting his mate to the quick.
       ”He respected her enough not to intrude on what she feared, and that gives me hope… Leave him here while we shall go talk to the council, they will advise on the situation, you have his memories?”
       Carlina nodded slowly, passing on the jumble of images to her mate who chuckled at the scenes.
       “Leave him on the blanket… He will recover in time and I think Cill is old enough to make her own decisions about her friends”
       Carlina reluctantly let James fall onto the blanket, none too gently... as an afterthought she replaced the blindfold around his head once more.
      ”Hurt my daughter human, and we will both come looking for you”. 
She left the powerful message in his mind… knowing he would hear it when he woke, with a silent flash, both dragons disappeared.

Cill made her way down to the lake once more, hesitantly picking her way through the rushes until she could see the blanket, she blinked, something wasn’t right!
       James was lying on his side and not moving. Forgetting her fear and anger, she ran over to the blanket and looked down at him. He was trembling and moaning with his arms wrapped around himself.
      She stood back a little, not knowing what to do and wringing her paws as he let out a moan and suddenly cried out “I won’t hurt her!”
       Cill came to a decision and wrapped her paws around him, pulling him against her, and hugging him to her chest as he sobbed and shook in reaction to the shock he had suffered. 
      His arms slipped around her neck and not even listening to what he was babbling she suddenly felt warm, a rumbling purr started in her throat and she stroked his back until he calmed down, tears leaking from beneath his blindfold.
       James slowly realized he wasn’t in danger and as the soothing purr ran through his body, his hands slowly moved up and down, feeling the warm smooth-scaled hide, the ridge running down her back. They traced lightly along her jaw line and up over her eye ridges.
       “Cill?” he murmured… ”Yes James?” the quiet reply came
 “You have a scary mama”, he murmured with a hint of a nervous chuckle.
 “You saw and met my mother?  Spoke with her? ...and you’re still alive?” Cill heard herself ask somewhat incredulously.
       “Well... I certainly hope I am alive... I like holding you “, James said, not caring what he might say anymore. “I don’t think she liked me seeing you much though”
      Cill felt a giggle well up, “I didn’t think she’d come and see... I’m glad she didn’t do anything to harm you though” James did not mention he would likely have nightmares of the little pilot light for as long as he lived.
       “Cill... If I take off my blindfold... will you run away?” he asked quietly, his hands stroking her neck slowly, “Are you scared of me?”
Cill wanted to snort and say ‘I’m not scared of any human’, but she thought a bit before answering, “I didn’t want to scare you away, you seem so nice, and I know you won’t hurt me now”.
A paw came up and gently tugged his blindfold away; he was suddenly looking at a silver-scaled chest and a fairly well padded one at that.
He blushed scarlet as he realized her was pressing against her breasts and he did not even realize dragons would have breasts.
      Tilting his head, he looked up and saw a long tooth-laden jaw. Elegant in its curves with a pair of silvery horns sweeping back from her brow and beneath the ridges a pair of gorgeous green eyes bored into his, waiting to see his reaction. 
      He recognized them instantly from his dreams and smiled at her.
 “And why would I run from such a beautiful dragoness?” he murmured, his gaze traveling down her form. 
      She certainly was not as large as her mother was, he saw. Still, even with most of her length being tail and her wings most of her width she would still top eight feet easily.
      Cill felt herself grow warm at his words and she slowly relaxed her grasp, letting him lay back on the blanket.
       “I need a drink”, said James, fumbling for the flagon and taking a long swig “It’s been an interesting day”
        He smiled at Cill as she sat on the blanket beside him, he could not take his eyes off her, he realized. She was magnificent.
       Cill said nothing, still feeling a little overwhelmed, he could see her clearly, and he had not soiled himself and run off in terror.
       He had praised and stroked her... and his gaze was intent, as if he was drinking her in... 
      ”I know now how my comments would have upset you”, he said quietly after taking another swig of wine, “I bet you hate knights with a passion. I certainly got that impression from your mother”.
       Cill sighed and laid her head on her forepaws “they aren’t our favorite beings, no”, she replied. “It has only been since we perfected the invisibility spell that we have been safe from them, and even now we have to be careful, not feeding too often, not leaving bodies in plain sight”, he chuckled at that.
       “Your mother could have swallowed me whole...” he shook his head slowly “I don’t know why she didn’t... You have no reason to trust me or my kind”.
      He reached out a hand and gently caressed along Cill’s jaw.
 “She had her reasons I’m sure”, replied Cill as she lifted her head to allow the caress “She would have read your mind and seen your intentions”.
       James felt a flush creep up his face once more, even now, he could feel his own arousal as he looked at her and stroked her slowly, and wondering if that had been what spared him.
       “Perhaps she wouldn’t want to hurt a friend of her daughters?” he murmured, knowing he was being foolish, how could he be anything more than a friend to a Dragoness?
       Cill would laugh at him if she had an inkling of the pressure in his breeches and the urges he got near her.
       “She knows you could deal with me anytime”, his hand slid down her neck and she purred again, feeling a delightful jolt run through her body and centering on her sex. “Can I come visit you again?” he asked.. ”I’ll bring some more goose”.
      Cill‘s tongue lolled from the side of her mouth as she enjoyed the caress.. “Mm? Oh I think you can visit anytime now,” she purred.
       “Thank you”, grinned James, and leaning over, gave her a kiss on the tip of her snout.
       “What was that?’ she asked, trying not to look cross-eyed down her snout at the man.
 “It was a kiss, a gesture of affection”, he chuckled, “Don’t dragons kiss each other?”
Cill shook her head slowly, “No, we lick, like this”.
       James laughed as her long, hot tongue slathered over his face, “well... that’s fun”, he said, grinning at her “I’m afraid my tongue isn’t like that though... so you’ll have to put up with another kiss instead”.
       Cill grinned back “It’s a start; you can kiss me again if you want”.
 James kissed her again and slowly stood up, the sun was sinking, and he felt suddenly exhausted by the day’s events. Not to mention sore where he had been grasped firmly around his chest by powerful talons.
 “I’d better be getting back to the keep... if I’m not back by sundown the doors will be locked and no-one allowed in”. 
He rolled up the blanket and smiled “Please... keep the blanket; I’m sure you have a nice home and it’ll go well on your bed”
 Cill took it gratefully, feeling a little odd all of a sudden at the thought of her human providing things for her lair. “It is pretty bare... I don’t have much in it as yet”.
        James bowed slowly to her “I’ll see what I can do milady Cill”, he murmured, pleased that she had accepted his gift. “I’ll try and get out again in the next couple of days, we don’t get much time off though”, he sighed, thinking of the next few days training schedule.
 Cill smiled to herself “You never did get to have your swim. So I still owe you one”.
James smiled at her “Good, I certainly need one”
       Giving her another kiss on the snout he walked back to his impatient horse, who was looking none too happy. It had seen and smelt the dragons and was looking a little wild around the eyes. It rolled a white-rimmed eye at him and for once did not complain about the saddlebags, settling into a fast trot back towards the keep and its nice safe stables.

Chapter 5

The council of Dragons was in uproar, but that was nothing new. Various dragons huffed and spat at one another in frantic bargaining and negotiation over territory and feeding areas as well as the local gossip that filtered through the layers of hierarchy.
       Nokala strode into the chambers with Carlina at his side.
 “Do we have to tell them Noka?” She asked, her earlier rage dissipating with the realization that they were about to drop a fireball into the middle of the council.
 “It won’t last. It CANNOT last. You know the gossip that will go round…”
       Nokala turned to his mate and sighed, “You know what was going through that human’s mind, he is powerfully attracted to Cill, and she to him. The inevitable consequence of that attraction may be painful to you but may also be of great benefit to dragon-kind”
       Carlina huffed to herself, she knew he was right, but the thought of her hatchie possibly mating with a human revolted her. What if they were compatible? What about eggs? She shuddered in mixed revulsion and fear for her daughter’s future. 
      Nokala stepped up to the central podium and whispered to the eldest, begging a moment of his time. The elder’s eye ridges flew up in mingled amusement and disbelief as he heard of the happenings at the lakeside.
       “You’re kidding”, he gasped out loudly and suddenly there was silence in the chamber as the squabbling dragons turned to see their elder laughing hard in his lounger pounding the table with his fist.
       “I always knew your daughter was a troublemaker Noka”, Elder Marre guffawed; tears of laughter rolling down his snout, “But this? This is the best yet!”
      Nokala nodded “It gets better”, he sent the mental image stream to the elder, including his mates reaction and what she had said to the human in her anger.
       “Hmmm… I see your point Nokala”, Marre nodded after absorbing the stream of emotions and images.
        “This has never happened before and it is an opportunity to take advantage of... So long as it is allowed to develop on its own”, his gaze slid slowly to Carlina who felt her cheekruffs grow warm under the gaze..
      “But we shall have to inform the members of the council and let them deliberate”, banging his staff on the table Marre stood up to face the delegates.
       “We have an interesting situation to debate brothers. Open your minds to view. With your hearts, and not your eyes”, he declared with a wink at Nokala, sharing the stream around the council, various hisses and sudden intakes of breath indicated the depth of the shock.
       Carlina’s talons dug into Nokala’s arm as she waited for the inevitable fighting to start.
      
      

      Cill wandered slowly back to her lair, the blanket wrapped around her forepaw. She was feeling strangely happy and it was with pleasure that she ran into her lair and spread the blanket on her bed, shuffling it around and rearranging it to her liking. 
      She thought of James and how he had reacted to her, the remembrance of his caressing made her slowly stroke her breasts. She flushed as she recalled how she had grabbed him and held him close at the thought of his being in trouble. Why did she feel this way about a human? 
      She also thought of her mother’s appearance and wondered what she had said to him. Her mother was imposing and if she had thought the human was a threat would have easily killed him on the spot. Snuggling into the blanket, she could scent him on it.
       Thinking hard she resolved to ask her mother later what had occurred.
 The heat in her loins seemed to grow stronger as she inhaled his scent, her paws sliding down to her vent and rubbing gently, feeling the moisture leak from between her fingers, she whimpered softly and thought of James.
      

The noise was almost deafening in the chamber, never had such a thing occurred, and several factions had immediately sprung up over the affair.
       Marre tried to maintain control but knew he had to let the information sink in to avoid over-reaction, thankfully the location of the pair had not been given, so those dragons who immediately voted to flame the impertinent human and his dragon-whore were unable to fly off and do so.
      This left both Nokala and Carlina to be the targets of insults and abuse.
 “This threatens the purity of Dragonkind”, hissed one elder red dragon, “We cannot let this go any further!”
       “Since when were you ever pure Tekala?”, the hissed riposte came from across the chamber, “this could be the hope of peace between humans and dragons”.
       Tekala lashed at the table with his talons, scoring deep marks along it “You would welcome the offspring of such a coupling into this chamber?” he growled, “a bastard hybrid of monkey and dragon? Who knows what will happen”.
       Marre hammered the desk with his scepter, calling for order amidst the chaos, “We shall observe this situation. If this human becomes a threat... he will easily be dealt with, though should he choose his path carefully, we cannot interfere with the fates. Something has brought these two together and it is not our responsibility to step in unless our survival is threatened. Do we all understand this?!”, he thundered.
      A chorus of various responses came from the assembled elders, many were not happy with this decision, but nodded to Marre, after all, they thought, no sensible dragoness could possibly want to couple with a human; it was against the very laws of nature. 
	Nokala leant across and whispered to Marre, “I need permission to use the Anifornum, the spell of accommodation”.
       Marre blinked and nodded “For you?” Nokala grinned, “I want to talk to this human who fancies my hatchie without scaring him into insensibility”.
       Marre chuckled and nodded, marking some runes on a piece of parchment, “Take this to the spellbinder and he shall remind you on its use, remember the time limit, no more than three days or you’ll suddenly find yourself full size and that could be awkward in a small room with humans”.
       Nokala thanked Marre and took the parchment scroll gratefully. He turned to Carlina. “Let’s go home”, he murmured to her, seeing she was most upset and only holding a brave face in front of her attackers. She turned to him thankfully and they left the chambers for their own lair as hostile eyes watched them depart.
      
      
James grinned at the gate guards as he rode in, it had been an extremely interesting day. He shook his head in disbelief, and what was worse, he couldn’t tell anyone about it without being locked up in bedlam for either being drunk or insane.
      Stopping at the kitchens for some supper, he sat pensively at the table and pondered. He admittedly had fainted when faced with Cill’s mother, and that bothered him.  
      He had honestly thought he was going to die and he had passed out, he had not even been able to reach for his sword with his arms pinned like that. What sort of knight faints in the face of mortal danger?
      He grimaced to himself, it could have been worse; he could have filled his breeches and then fainted. That would have made a good impression on her. He blinked, just why did she let him go? 
He knew she had read his mind... was she amused or shocked at what he had been thinking about Cill?
      He chewed ferociously at a piece of meat as he thought, and what about her father, should he fear him too? Should he turn tail and not see her again in case he brought the wrath of angry dragons down on the keep?
      Giving a loud sigh, he pushed his plate aside and finished a glass of rough wine before heading upstairs to sleep. 
      Undressing slowly he looked down at himself and turned slowly in front of the mirror; sure enough there were several dark bands of heavy bruising around his ribs where he had been grasped tightly by Carlina’s talons.
      He would have to make sure none of the other trainees saw them while sparring or there would be some difficult questions, wincing slightly as he got into bed he thought of Cill, her eyes and her purr. Giving a sigh, he tried to turn over then groaned as his erection suddenly got in the way.

Chapter 6

The next morning dawned cloudy and drizzly, James was up and swinging his sword at one of his classmates when the gates slowly opened and a large man on horseback entered the bartizan. He was dressed from head to toe in black leather and his stallion was as black as night. 
      The novices seemed to sense the dangerous aura surrounding this strange traveler as he spoke to the seneschal.
       “I require lodgings for no more than two nights”, he told Martin quietly “and stabling and fodder for my horse”, Martin looked at the stallion and nodded, “that’ll be two farthings for the room and stable milord”
      He looked the stranger up and down slowly, taking in the quality of the man as lord Tarrant would surely ask after him, there was a strange glint in the man’s eye, and he seemed to exude an uneasy presence.
       “Do you have a young novice- I believe he is called James here?” The man asked abruptly.
       Martin nodded “Yes Sir, he is in the squad training over in the corner there”, he pointed and the man’s eyes seemed to sharpen as he looked at the trainees practicing their sword drills relentlessly under Joe’s watchful gaze.
       “My name is Sir Nokal, could you inform him I wish to speak privately with him later?” he dropped an extra farthing into Martin’s hand.
       “I shall tell him you asked after him sir”, he let out a breath he had not realized he had been holding as the man disappeared into the keep and towards his room.
       “Oh lord, what’s that boy gone and done now to have the likes ‘o you asking after him”, muttered Martin to himself as he busied himself, he wandered into the kitchen where he caught the plump cook by the hips.
       “Jane, go and warn that scapegrace James that there’s a hard man a’ looking for him and if e’s in some sort of trouble, to come see me first afore there’s blood spilt”
       Jane nodded nervously and picked up the tray for the men’s rest break, sauntering out into the yard she smiled at the men and got the usual compliments and lewd comments, enjoying them as she passed out the tankards.
       “Ya should all be ashamed of y’selves”, she commented, “here I am giving ya cool drinks and all ya do is get hot about the breeches”, as she passed by James she leaned closer and whispered.
       “Martin says there’s a hard man looking for ya, and if ya gotten in trouble to go see him about it”
       There was a chorus of oohs and ahhs and nudges exchanged as James flushed and nodded, his heart pounding suddenly in fear. Who would send someone after him? He was sure he had cleared all his gambling debts.
       He ran through a mental list of those he had played tricks on in the not-too-distant past, surely cousin George had forgiven him for the frog in his pocket by now.
       ”Drink up Lads and we’ll get back to it”, he heard Joe call, finishing his tankard he turned back to the training, trying to lose himself in its repetitive actions as he drilled with the heavy sword.
      
      Nokala looked round the room and snorted, at least it had a bed and basin. He was not used to such cramped conditions. The spell seemed to be working well though he tended to itch in odd places, ‘damn clothing’ he thought. ‘How do they stand it?’
       He walked over to the window looking down into the keep and saw the men training... ahh... There he was, looking at him through human eyes Nokala nodded to himself, healthy, fit and a fine figure for a human, walking back to the table he poured himself a drink of water and thought to himself. He would join the men at their dinner and question this young human closely.
      


Cill woke with a start, clutching the blanket in her paws as she realized she had overslept and that the day was cloudy.
      She yawned widely and stretched her wings luxuriously, feeling surprisingly cheerful she cleaned her lair, carefully trying a little of her magic to push the dust out the door. Turning to her mirror, she checked herself for loose scales and dirt before attending to her toilet. 
      After making sure that she did not have loose meat stuck in her teeth she made her way down to the lake sniffing here and there, disturbing a bee or two as she stuck her snout in the flowers to sample the scents.
       Arriving at the edge where she and James had sat the previous day, she sniffed around some more. Quickly finding her mothers scent, and next to it... her fathers... puzzled she wondered why they had both come and what had happened to James.
       Giving a sigh, she rolled on her back, mentally reaching out for her mother.
 “Mama?” she called, “yes dear?” replied her mother, her voice sounding tired and worn.
 “What’s the matter mama?’ Cill asked, feeling the sadness in her mothers tone.
 “Oh my dear... Why didn’t you tell me about the human?” Carlina said, “I thought you had found a nice wealthy drake and instead I find a  ...a... monkey sitting on your lakeside”.
       Cill suddenly felt a surge of defiance rise up in her. “He is not a ‘monkey’ any more than we are lizards... he is kind and gentle and even after you scared him terribly yesterday he stayed and spoke to me and stroked me and even kissed me!”.
       Carlina’s horror grew as she realized her daughter was turning against her.
 “The council knows now… And your father...well, he wants to know more about him and went to the keep this morning to talk to him”
      Carlina felt out of her depth, how should she deal with this? To deny her daughter the human would only make her rebel all the more, to let him keep seeing her would only lead to her being corrupted further and making them the laughing stock of dragondom.
       “And who told the council?” growled Cill as she rolled swiftly onto her belly, her talons suddenly digging into the soft ground.
       “We had to dear… I read his mind and... And  ...” she could not keep the revulsion out of her voice, “He wanted to mate with you! A-a human!” 
       Cill snarled at her mother “Stay out of it! HE’S MINE!”, and broke off the contact abruptly.
       Carlina rocked back on her tail, shocked at the intensity of the last outburst and sniffling as she tried to re-establish the link, but there was no reply.
      Cill sobbed noisily as she looked towards the keep, her father talking to James. What could he possibly want to know? What would he do? Nevertheless, the thought kept returning to her mind, he wanted to mate with her!


James cautiously made his way to the mess hall; there was no sign of the man in black leathers so he made his way carefully across to collect his supper from the serving girls.
Seated at the table with Joe and several others he was feeling a little more secure as he tore his bread apart and dipped it into his gravy, wiping up the leftover juices.
He had almost finished when a voice behind him spoke softly and somewhat menacingly, “Ah, you would be young James Laurence hey?”
James turned around slowly and saw the leather clad man staring down at him; he swallowed his last mouthful hastily before answering.
 “Yes Sir, and who may you be if I may ask?” He tried to meet the man’s eyes but found his gaze sucked into them. They burned strangely and he felt suddenly pinned in place.

 “I am Sir Nokal, pleased to meet you at last” He held out his hand and James reached out and shook it slowly, it was a powerful and calloused grasp and he had a horrible sense of knowing this terrifying man from somewhere else.
       “Likewise Sir Nokal, What brings you to Guildford Keep”, there he thought, get it out in the open and perhaps he could pay this vicious-looking person off and get him as far away from here as possible.
       Nokala sat down slowly at the table, the other men nervously scooting apart to make room for him while glancing nervously at James.
       “I believe we have some common acquaintances”, he said, picking up a loaf of bread and tearing it slowly in half.
       James found he could not take his eyes off the bread as it tore slowly in twain “If this is about any gambling debts…” he started to say.
       “No... No... I just wish to talk with you about my daughter”, Nokala stated flatly, his voice as cold as iron. He leant back so his face slid into the shadows, giving his rough features a hollow look.
       Joe and the other men at the table exchanged rapid glances with one another, then slowly stood up and moved off while James gawped at the strange man in front of him. Joe clasped his hand on James shoulder briefly and sighed before walking off shaking his head.
       “Your daughter?” James managed to stammer out... ”I’m sure I don’t know your daughter…”
       Nokala chuckled “Oh yes you do... Her name is Cidiliana or Cill as you are no doubt aware”.
       James felt spots forming before his eyes and his breathing grow ragged.
 “You are her father?” he huffed, determined not to faint again “but you... Are not... A dragon? How?”
       Nokala stood up, “let’s go out into the fresh air shall we, It’s been a trying couple of days”
       Unable to resist, James let himself be guided out into the night air of the keep and up onto the higher walkway away from curious ears..
        “I am a dragon, James... My name is Nokala and you are in a heap of trouble... or maybe not”, he shook his head slowly as if in wonder.
       “For some reason my daughter thinks the world of you and you obviously enjoy her company too despite the obvious physical differences, You caught a hint of that trouble from her mother yesterday and even though she let you live, she isn’t at all happy about the situation.. You know how mothers are”.
       James could only listen and think of one thing at a time “but... how are you a human?” he asked finally.
 “Magic... there is a spell that allows me to remain human for up to three days at a time”
 Nokala grinned at him and folded his arms slowly amidst much creaking of leather.
       “You are taking this pretty well, better than I expected”, he took a slow drink of wine as his eyes searched James’s face.
      “Now…Do you like my daughter?”
 James nodded quickly, deciding honesty was the best policy. 
      “Good... because we are going to leave the two of you alone and watch the sparks fly”
       James blinked “Why? I’d have thought I would have been the last being you’d want around her?” gulping his wine too fast, he spluttered noisily while Nokala patted him on the back.
       “Let’s just say there are some mighty curious dragons out there who want to see what happens. This has never happened before you see, so we don’t know what to do, as for her mother… well that’s another thing. Carlina cant stand humans, her old mate was killed by one a couple of centuries ago and she’s never really gotten over it, if she decides to take you out, well, There’s not a lot I can do about it”
       James breathed deeply and tried to stand a little straighter, “I wasn’t even aware she was a dragon until I saw her mother” he shyly shuffled his feet a little. “But even then it didn’t matter”
       Nokala chuckled “That’s what baffled her mother, you didn’t care she was a dragon... And you had all those naughty feelings for her too”
       James blushed brightly; unaware the dragon’s vision could easily see the heat flush rising up his face.
 “Hell, she’s a fine sexy young dragoness and that brings up another point”, he turned serious again, “Dragons set a lot of store on strength boy, and if another dragon takes a fancy to Cill, he will kill you and take her... By force if necessary… so you’ll need to be strong and able to defend her”
      He took another sip of the wine and made a face “This wine stuff really is vile you know”, he said before pouring it over the wall.
       “I’ll let you think about what I’ve told you… and you can ask me any questions about it tomorrow, I know Cill wants to see you again... But just be aware that dragons bond fiercely and if I know my daughter, she holds on tight”, giving James another pat on the shoulder, Nokala retired with a grin and leaving the novice staring into the night, his head whirling with the implications of what he had learnt.


Chapter 7

Deep in her lair, Cill lay on her blanket, ignoring her mother’s attempts to call her.
She felt a sort of icy calm descend on her as she thought about what she was going to do, she had to face it, and she felt … something towards this human and her mother’s words had burned into her mind and she could not escape the force of them
Looking down at herself, she felt her jaw muscles clench as she recalled how he had felt pressed against her chest… She had felt something too.
      Her father had probably warned James off and threatened him with dismemberment if he ever went back near her again. Dashing a tear from her snout angrily she stalked to the door of her lair, was she even allowed to choose her friends?  Let alone her mates! That thought stopped her in her tracks … was there someone else she could ask for advice? Someone neutral, who would not perhaps be so quick to judge or condemn her?
      She tapped her teeth with a talon; her father wasn’t the only one who knew the elders. Stepping to the corner of the cave she quickly scratched her travel runes and thought of the one old dragon she could trust., there was a small flash  and silently she vanished leaving only a small swirl of dust on the floor.

Marre sat in his lair, the ancient dragon gently tapping an alembic as it sat above a violet flame before returning to his book.
He felt the travel spell form within the circle moments before it completed and nodded to himself in satisfaction.
 “Hello, Cill... I’ve been expecting you...”, walking over he looked at the depressed dragoness and took her into a hug. “There now, I hear you’ve been giving your parents cause for grief again”.
 Cill looked up at him and nodded, hugging him back “What did mama tell you?” she asked while looking round the familiar dusty room with its racks of scrolls and mysterious jars and bottles.
”That you had chosen to totally embarrass all dragon-kind and willfully ignore her advice as well as confuse a poor human so completely he is even now being forced to listen to your father drone at him”, said Marre, holding out a large steaming mug “Have a drink”
      Cill took the mug and sniffed at it “What is it?” She asked suspiciously, knowing the elders penchant for herbal experimentation.
       “Merely a kind of tea, I find it calming, now... Come and tell me what has been going on”, he strode slowly to an anteroom, laying himself out on a long contoured lounger and waited until she had done the same.
       “Did your mother tell you what the council had decided?” asked Marre, sipping his cup of tea and watching her closely.
      Cill took a nervous slurp of her tea and shook her head “I got angry and told her to leave us alone”, she mumbled, a little ashamed of her outburst, hatchlings being brought up to respect their parents.
       Marre nodded and idly tapped a talon on the lounger, “So you didn’t hear her say the council had decided to let you keep seeing this human then”, he murmured, his eyes glittering as he watched her closely, seeing the uncertainly ripple across her silvery hide.
       Cill’s head jerked up swiftly, the young dragoness not having learnt how to hide her reactions. “They what?” she gaped at him... ”But…” unable to complete the sentence her mouth closed with a snap.
       “Yes...it seems the elders in their wisdom...some of them anyway, saw the truth in his heart and that he not only is strongly attracted to you but has managed to give you the same feelings about him.. Is that right?”
      Her cheekruffs hot, Cill nodded, sipping the tea again. “But it’s so silly”, she mumbled, “Mama can’t stand the idea, she almost spoilt everything”
       Marre nodded “That is the nature of mothers; she does not want to see you hurt, either physically or emotionally.  She rushes to her hatchlings side to see the male she boasts of and instead finds a nasty sticky human. Hardly what she was expecting, I think she was rather restrained actually considering she could have toasted him on the spot”
       Cill blinked, listening as Marre continued, “She will do what Nokala says, he is a sensible drake and even though I think he is unsure he knows you are strong enough to handle a human. At least physically...”
      He leaned his head closer to hers “Emotionally however, you are immature in your dealings with males… he may amuse you for a time, then you tire of him... He makes a nuisance of himself and you hurt him... and you can oh so easily rend him... can you heal him?... can you handle holding in your instincts to claw him when he annoys you?”
       Marre sipped and put his mug down with a soft clink on the table, “Dragons get very physical in their relationships, especially during mating. I am sure you have heard your parents at times. Your human cannot do this, this is why they cover themselves in fake scales and make talons of steel for their inadequate paws”,
 Cill listened wide-eyed, surely she would never harm James, and then she remembered how easily she had picked him up and how fragile he had felt against her.
       “Then I shall help protect him”, she declared, “I do not see him as a…a diversion... but something more…”
      She ached to tell the elder that she wanted to grab James and carry him back to her lair and couple with him until they both could not move anymore. She suspected the wily old elder could sense this though. 
Marre’s talons lightly tapped on the mug, “And of course there’s your magic… weak as yet, but growing all the time… you’ll need training and more scrolls if you are to control it”
       Cill nodded and finished her tea, feeling more relaxed than she had for some time. 
      “Have you been learning your runes?’ Marre asked. Cill nodded eagerly.
 “So what is the next spell you would master then?’, he asked with a grin, half knowing the answer already.
 “The spell of invisibility Master”, she said, grinning widely.
 “Difficult... but with practice... you should be able to use it in few days”
       Marre tried to keep from grinning back. Ahh, he thought, life was surely going to be very interesting for the poor unsuspecting human in the future. Taking a deeper look at Cill, he could see she was coming into season, it was only a week or so away, by which time both the human and dragoness would be frantic, oh yes he laughed silently to himself, this was going to be fun!
      
      

James found it difficult to concentrate on his training the next day. His head was spinning with questions and situation as a small part of him cursed his bad luck of getting involved with a dragoness, while the other larger and noisier part more often than not shouted it down and kept whispering in his ear about her sleek shape, her elegant head, her warm breasts… 
“Damn!”  He exclaimed as he tripped on a cobblestone and fell backwards landing painfully on his rump while trying to avoid a blow from his opponent. He flushed as the others laughed at him as he stood up, rubbing his backside with a rueful grin. 
      “I’m sure battles aren’t all fought in tidy courtyards with only small stones to trip on” he commented to Joe who grinned back at him.
       “Well your right there lad. But soil is usually softer to land on” 
His face suddenly turned serious and he beckoned James over.
 “Now lad”, he murmured, “Ya’ve lost all concentration, ya as clumsy as hell and ya keep lookin’ round as if the de’il himself were chasing ya”
He gave the novice a poke on the shoulder ‘Come an’ tell me wha’ that deaths-head man who spoke to ya last nigh’ was on about.. Have ya been a’diddlin’ his daughter? The talk of it’s all round the Keep”
 James let his breath out in a whoosh “Ok... I’ll tell you what I think it’s safe to tell you.” 
Joe’s eyebrow rose a little, odd way of putting it he thought to himself.
 “No, I haven’t been out tupping his daughter, he… actually came to tell me it was ok to keep seeing her though”
 Joe frowned “A man like that doesn’t seem one to be crossed easily”
 James nodded “You should see his wife” folding his arms Joe leant against the wall.
 “So now... when did you meet this lass then?” he asked.
 James hesitated - he did not want everyone to know about Cill’s lake.
 “Remember the night of the party, how I shared those geese with a traveler?” he said carefully.
 Joe thought “Ahh- a wandering lass…” he shook his head slowly “Well, remember Sir Tarrant’s rules lad, you don’t want to be riskin’ your health diddlin’ some woman with who knows wha’ in her crotch”
 He blinked as James threw back his head and laughed, “Oh it’s unlikely I’ll ever get that chance... But one day, I think you should meet her, and then you’ll understand”
He flourished his sword in a cavalier fashion and went back to join the training again leaving Joe with a bemused smiled on his face.


      Cill arrived back at her lair with a scroll tucked under her arm, trying not to tremble she unrolled it on her small table and tried to read the runes.
 Tracing them with a talon, she murmured to herself. ”Nauthiz...Jera...Hagalaz”
Feeling a tingle in her paw, she felt her magic gather. Carefully she lifted her talon, not wanting to risk activating the spell, she practiced the final component in her mind “Rash’e muul^o kashka” until she felt she had it down perfectly, unrolling the scroll she found the deactivating phrase and repeated it to herself silently until she had it burned into her brain.
      It would take some time for her to gather the energy required to attempt the spell properly without exhausting herself in the process,but she felt she had gained a powerful aid in her plans for her human, grinning she rolled the scroll back up and went to wrap herself in her blanket and sleep.
      

James ate his dinner slowly; he knew Nokala would be waiting for him on the battlements and he wanted to get his mind in order before speaking to him. He did not think the human-dragon would suddenly rip him to shreds if he asked nicely. Then he suddenly thought of something. .if her father could appear as a human... Could Cill do the same?
      It would certainly be easier yet he also realized she knew little of humans; her father seemed to be more knowledgeable, even riding a horse. He scratched his chin slowly, rubbing the stubble there as he thought. 
      Looking over at the other table, he saw the other novitiates had their heads down and were muttering amongst themselves.
      They caught his glance and grew silent…some throwing a resentful glance his way, he did not know why; after all, he was the one in trouble here. 
Nokala waited patiently on the battlement. He knew the turmoil the human was going through and could sense it partially; Dragons only invaded the minds of sentients rarely as it was considered the height of bad manners amidst dragon kind. Some thoughts should not be known.
 Nokala grinned; he would love to know what the human was really thinking. The hints he had picked up indicated the decision to keep visiting Cill had already been made, no matter the consequences.
      Tugging his cloak around him in the cool air he saw James make his way from the mess and slowly walk up the steps to the battlements, time to appear the sullen father again, Nokala thought, have to make sure this boys got the guts for when he realizes he’s really in trouble.
 James coughed lightly as he approached.
 “Well?” said Nokala, folding his arms slowly “What do you want to know?”
James shuffled his feet slowly, suddenly embarrassed as it reminded him of his own father’s expression when he had done something stupid.
”Cill is young isn’t she?” he asked tentatively.
 Nokala nodded, “She is about fifty human years old”
 James blinked...”Fifty?” he said, trying to keep the surprise from his voice.
 “That’s about the equivalent of eighteen human years to dragons,” stated Nokala calmly.
 James nodded again; “Can she turn into a human like you?” he asked while trying to keep the eagerness out of his voice.
“No, not yet, as she is young her magic is weak, but growing stronger every day”, Nokala stated flatly
 “She can do magic? Has... has she used any on me?” he asked, wondering if some spell had been cast upon him that was causing him to think what he had been thinking in the depths of the night. 
      Grinning Nokala shook his head “No, and if she had I’d have spanked her so hard her tail would glow, she doesn’t have the power to do that  ... yet” he finished.
      James tried to find a delicate way to phrase the question that preyed on him most “What could happen if she and I um . . . found a way... To... er…” he stammered and flushed.
      Nokala leaned down closer “We don’t know… that is something you will have to find out for yourselves,” He murmured with a predatory grin. “You don’t have fireproof armor do you”
       James paled but managed to pull himself together enough to stand up fully. “No, why would I need it?” he asked cautiously.
       “Because if you do manage to mate with her, you become part of our Clan and her mothers… that will cause friction”. The dragon-human’s grin could not grow any wider, though his teeth seemed to be unusually pointy.
      James nodded and gulped, but in seeing the grin suddenly felt better, despite his fears he realized he had a friend in this being, or at least a neutral observer.
       Standing up straight, he took a deep breath. “I should like to meet your family properly sometime, If only to reassure your mate I have no intention of hurting her daughter, I feel a strong bond with her and though I don’t know how she feels about me in certain regards I’d like to keep seeing her”.
       He let out his breath and looked at Nokala who nodded approvingly and spoke. “There is one other I would like you to meet soon, an elder of the dragon council”
       James blinked “You have a council?” he asked then realized how foolish he sounded.
       “Oh yes” came the amused reply, “A council, a judiciary, and law keepers, I would not put you in front of the council yet. Many of them are furious at what they perceive as an affront to the race of dragons. There hasn’t been a dragon killed by a human for several centuries now since we learnt how to protect ourselves through magic, but Cill’s mother still remembers those times as do many others”
      He gave James a cheerful slap on the shoulder “Oh, Cill was most impressed with the gold. We dragons are very acquisitive and if you can provide the odd gift of precious metal or jewel to her, it’ll mean a lot “
       James nodded “My father provides me with a regular stipend while I am training here so I’ll find something nice for her” Then he remembered something else, “She said she had a lair and that it was looking empty, Ill try and find some nice things for it too”
       Nokala blinked, he didn’t say that helping build and furnish the nest was one of the final things a drake did before claiming and mating with their chosen female, at least when they were able to.
       “That’s a good idea son”, he chuckled softly, liking this young human even more. It was almost if he was a dragon stuck in a human’s body. He could not wait to see how Marre reacted to him. 
James thanked Nokala for his advice and asked. “Shall I see you again?” 
      “Oh I shall be around, though likely not in this form. I find it uncomfortable and constraining” 
      Nokala flexed his arms as though he had wings, “If you need me... in an emergency or for advice, blow on this” and reaching into his black leather jerkin he pulled out a small silver whistle. “Humans can’t hear it, but dragons can and this one is tuned to me personally,” he offered the whistle to James who took it with awe.
       “Oh, and I look a lot like Cill in my own form ...Only a lot larger”
 James offered his hand in farewell. “Thank you Nokala, I hope we can be friends and that I don’t disappoint you or Cill”
       Nokala gravely shook his hand “We shall see, we are all taking a big chance  ... on the pair of you” 
       James nodded and turned back to the stairs, his head full and his heart elated, now all he had to do was find some way to get the time to go back to the lake!

Nokala watched him walk from the battlements and sighed, he would make a good son-in-law he thought, if he was able to survive mating, Carlina, and those dragons who would toast him alive if they got the chance. 
Wandering back down to the stables he saddled his horse who rolled a white-rimmed eyeball at him.
       “Are you done yet” it complained forcefully, “I’m sick of carrots dammit”
 Nokala laughed and patted his friend on the snout “But your so cute as a horse Moona“
      The horse snorted derisively “Next time you get to be the horse moron. I have heard some interesting tidbits of gossip while you have been cooing over your future son in law. He hasn’t got a good reputation you know, flighty, irresponsible and he apparently has a human girlfriend back home… are you sure you want him near Cill?”
       Nokala nodded and threw the saddle over Moona’s back “I’m sure, there’s something that’s drawing them together and I don’t want to be in the way when they realize it…I cant help thinking about what the hatchlings will look like though” 
      Moona snorted, “Come off it... You can’t see that pasty-faced whelp actually trying to... you can… cant you?” he sounded shocked as they trotted down towards the gate.
       “Our race is declining Moona, I’ve a feeling that we may have to sacrifice certain things to revitalize it,” Nokala murmured as they passed the gate and went out into the forest night. 


Chapter 8

Jack and Eric, two of the other novices in training at the keep watched as James came down the stairs for breakfast, waiting for him to fill his plate and mug before beckoning him over to their table.
 “So young James, still with us and with all your parts too?” Jack laughed coarsely as he looked slyly from side to side. “I know it makes a man mighty horny, all this hard training, and no women to help him relax”
 	He nudged Eric who said, “Though if one did meet a woman round here, why… he should tell his friends so they could share in his good fortune”, this last accompanied by a sly wink “Especially if he is on good terms with her father”. 
      James colored, knowing they were just baiting him but he also felt a surge of amusement well up in him.
       “Well Jack, I don’t think you’d be man enough for her. She’d just chew you up and spit you right out”, he said with a grin.
       Jack scowled, “We’ve been watching you, sneaking out o ‘days … T’ain’t right, your keeping a doxy in them woods”
       James frowned but controlled himself, “Just keep thinking like that Jack and you’ll make a poor knight. I don’t have a doxy nor am I sneaking”
       He took a bite of his breakfast, forcing the lumpy porridge down his throat, and feeling it land in his stomach with a thump. They believed in good, solid meals at the keep, his apparent sincerity had caught the men off guard and they turned to one another to mutter briefly.
       “We’ll be keeping an eye on you and your tricks”, Eric said finally, “Though if she looks anything like her father, you’d better keep your dagger handy in case she decides to cut herself a trophy”
       James just grinned at them.  “Her father said he knew my intentions were good and that I would comport myself as a gentleman around her and not take advantage”. 
      He then tried to look serious, “I don’t think he’d like it if you two availed yourselves of his daughter’s charms, and he would take action promptly”
       The pair looked nervously at one another as they recalled the aura of danger and hidden strength the man had radiated and shivered.
      Jane appeared at the table with a flagon to refill their mugs and the pair turned their attention to her and proceeded to annoy her with many flattering comments about the size of her breasts and the lush curves of her rump until she threatened them with porridge for their dinner as well.
       James chuckled, finished his breakfast, and went out into the keep to think. 
Jingling the loose coins in his pouch, he thought of what to get Cill for her lair, remembering her size he did not think he could find furniture large enough for an eight-foot tall dragoness with an equally long tail to use. Not without asking seriously, dangerous questions at least. He wandered towards the market area, whistling softly as he thought.

Marre ducked quickly beneath his bench as the seething purple liquid in the alembic suddenly turned brown and thick, violently reacting with the last ingredient.
There was a loud boom and splinters of glass shattered on the walls of his laboratory along with the smoking remains of the potion. Sighing he stood up from behind the bench and got another alembic… this spell would be his masterpiece - if it worked.
He crossed his talons for luck briefly and started to check his calculations once more.


      James moved from cart to cart, idly looking at the wares of the peddlers and trying to ignore the desperate pleas of penury and various incurable medical conditions they displayed.
      He could not see any jewelers anywhere but as he strode past one of the last carts, he caught sight of a corner of bright crimson cloth, shot through with what appeared to be gold threads shoved beneath several other plainer fabrics. 
      He paused by it and leant over the cart, tugging on the edge until it came into view. It was some sort of banner or bunting and he wondered where the peddler had gotten it.
       “Would you like a better look, young sir”, the peddler asked, a moon-faced man with a wine-bibbers bulbous red nose emerging from the shadows behind the cart 
      “What is it?’ asked James as the peddler gave a heave and pulled the fabric free of the cart, wheezing a little.
       “I got it off a traveler from the east”, he said “Worth a pretty penny too”, he said, getting into a bartering mood and grinning a gap-toothed smile at his newest victim.
       James unrolled the long supple cloth and smiled to himself, not only was the color stunning it had a serpentine dragon embroidered in gold thread upon it! 
      He knew he had to have it for Cill and trying not to let his enthusiasm show on his face, turned to the peddler.
       “Well, I’m in need of a new horse-blanket; this might do if the price were right. What were you asking for it?”
       The peddler bobbed a bow towards him “I was told a guinea would be a right price for this beauty your lordship, and I’m sure a rich young man as yourself would be easily able to purchase it at that price”
       He stroked the fabric slowly with a fat finger and grinned at James who had drawn himself up in disbelief.
       “A guinea? I could buy your whole wretched cart for that!” he exclaimed, “three shillings... And I’ll throw in some wine as well”
       The peddler blustered “3 shillings? I’ve not seen the like of this cloth anywhere else and you insult me by offering me a pittance?” he held the cloth out and shook it.
        “Feel it lordship. It would look grand on a Ladies bed or atop a Knights steed, but as I am forced to beg with you to feed my four daughters and pay their dowries I must reconsider my demands...10 shillings…”
       James grinned, if this fat one had daughters he certainly was not the father. 
He fondled the cloth and grinned as he imagined Cill lying upon it in her lair.
”Perhaps I was a little penurious”, he admitted “5 shillings”
      The peddler looked up at James and wondered if he could push his luck, he had seen the look in the boys eyes before many times in other customers and knew he could get more. 
      “Please Sir, think of my poor wife, pregnant with our sixth daughter and hungry. We need to be able to put something aside for our old age; surely you could spare 7 shillings for such a fine piece”
       James grinned, “I thought you only had 4 daughters?” he murmured.
 The peddler blanched but recovered quickly “It’s the wife sir; she never was much good at counting…”
 James grinned and reached down to his belt for his pouch. It would take a sizable chunk of his month’s money but he knew Cill would appreciate it,
 “Done then…,” he said while counting out the money into the man’s sweaty hand as he bobbed and puffed with gratitude.
 “Thank you Sir, if there is anything else I can get you, just ask for Marlow”
 After rolling up the banner and tucking it under his arm, James nodded.
 “Thank you Master Marlow”, he was about to move off when a thought struck him “Do you know any jewelers Marlow? One that can do good work while not asking too many questions?”
 Marlow rubbed his puffy nose with a greasy hand before answering.
       “I know some jewelers sure, if you want something made special though. There’s only one I’d trust to keep his mouth shut, and he aint cheap”
       James nodded slowly, “I’ll let you know if I want to commission him for something”. Marlow nodded and smiled as the young novice walked back to the keep, his new crimson and gold banner carefully rolled and hidden under his arm
      
      .
Cill woke and yawned widely while she looked round her lair. It needed to be larger she thought, her talon idly tapping on the floor as she got off the bed.
      She felt strong today so perhaps she should try to enlarge the interior a little more. Her cave lair seemed to be a natural fissure that opened out at the base of a cliff and she was not sure how far back it went. 
      Tapping at the walls carefully she listened to the sounds of the rock until she found a hollow sounding area and after digging at it slowly with her talons she found another cavity.
      After ensuring it was strong and safe, she carefully raked it clear then swept the dirt outdoors with a quick spell.
      Feeling proud at having added another few feet to her domain she returned to her bed and thought of James. 
      Perhaps he would visit today and she could show him her lair, suddenly she blinked in surprise - where had that come from she wondered?
      A dragon’s lair was its best-kept secret, where it hid its carefully gathered hoard, its final hiding place from danger and here she was going to invite a human right into it.
       She shook her head, perhaps her mother was right and she shouldn’t be seeing James, it was interfering with all sorts of traditions and customs, wiping a piece of dirt from her tail she smiled inwardly.
      She trusted him, and besides, she thought, sucking on a talon, one day he would be in here, alone with her… then they could…Without realizing she bit her paw at the surge of emotion and heat she suddenly felt rush through her and then yelped at the pain.
       Flushing with embarrassment she looked around in case anyone had heard then caught herself doing so and felt even more foolish.

      James was in his room when he thought he heard something shout in his head “Cill?” he threw out silently, before he had realized he had done so, ”is that you?”
 Back in her cave Cill jerked her head up and looked round guiltily, “James?” she said silently
      ”I thought I heard you call out”, James said, suddenly awakening to the fact he could talk to her while she was far away.
 	“I hurt my paw” Cill admitted, a tinge of embarrassment making itself felt through the tenuous link.
 	“Are you alright?” James asked with concern. This was great! He could talk to her anytime this way. Even if he did not know how he was doing it.
Cill nodded and he felt her affirmation “Its ok, I was just surprised, that’s all. Will you be at the lake today?” she asked, trying to keep the eagerness from entering her thoughts.
       “Nay dear, I have to train this morning, But we have a days break tomorrow and unless I get lumbered with some duty I’ll be able to come and visit with you”
 As he was less experienced at controlling his emotions, Cill felt his eagerness and a feeling of accomplishment at something he had done.
 “I had a good talk with your father too” he added, Cill nibbled her talon nervously at this. 
      “He didn’t threaten to toast me like your mother did, and I get the feeling he isn’t that happy but he is willing to let me keep seeing you”, there was a definite sense of elation that Cill could pick up now, what had her father told him?
       She wondered if she should tell him about the council and decided it could wait for another day.
       “This is a great way to talk”, she heard him say, “Can we do it anytime?” She nodded again.
       “If the other is willing to talk at that time yes,” she murmured, letting a few of her affectionate thoughts leak down to him.
       “Mmmm…then I hope we can talk again soon” he replied, suddenly feeling as if a large bucket of warm water had been poured over him, sending a surge of pleasure running down his spine. He felt his body responding and echoing it back to Cill.
      ”Until tomorrow then”, he murmured, resisting the urge to suddenly rip off all his clothes and run to the lake. Feeling her mind let go gently he relaxed then looked down at his abruptly tight breeches again ‘damn”
Cill stretched luxuriantly on her bed, she had felt the immediate response in him, and it had felt good.
      Perhaps there was more to this mating thing than she had thought. She sucked on her sore talon again, hadn’t he called her dear too? Bounding out the door, she frolicked down to the lake for a swim. 
      

Marre’s housekeeping dragon Janna sighed as the lair shook to yet another eruption from the old dragon’s laboratory.
       “The ceiling”, she muttered to herself as she walked up the ramp slowly, wondering if the old fool had finally done himself in properly this time.
       Tapping on the door with a talon, she called out “Elder Marre? Are you alright?” Not hearing an answer, she pushed the door open slowly. There was dust and debris over everything and no sign of Marre amidst the wreckage.
Pushing aside a broken lounger, she saw something glimmering on the table then suddenly she found herself caught up in Marre’s arms and spun vigorously around the room.
 “It worked! It worked!”  Marre roared, letting the bemused housekeeper go and holding up the alembic to peer within it. Spinning in slow circles was a glittering emerald scale, lightly glowing and seething with hidden power.
 	“What’s that?” The housekeeper huffed while frowning at the scale. “It isn’t going to blow us up is it?”
 Marre chuckled “That, Janna, is the hope of the future”, his wise eyes narrowing as he watched the scale slowly rotate of its own accord.

Chapter 9

James woke with a groan, his body sore and aching from the intense training that Joe and the others had put him through the previous afternoon.
       Those bastards... He thought to himself. They knew he had a break day today and they had deliberately overworked him so he would not have the energy to do anything.
       He would show them, he growled to himself and rolled out of bed. Landing on the cold floor with a grunt and staggering to his feet he limped over to get some water.
       Splashing the cold liquid from the basin onto his face and sipping a little he slowly stretched and massaged his limbs until he stopped quivering and felt he could face the day.
       Walking down the stairs, he bumped into Jane, the buxom tavern cook and maid. Everyone knew she was keeping company with Joe but no one dared say a word about it.
      ”Morning Jane”, he said, surprised at how tired he sounded, “what’s for breakfast?”  He stifled a yawn as he looked at her through bleary eyes.
       “Well there’s still some beef left from last night if ya want go carve yourself some slices, but by the look of it ya’d have trouble lifting the knife” She eyed him up and down speculatively.
      James grinned weakly and made it to the mess hall. He looked at the remains of the sizable roast upon the table and grinned as an idea came into his head.
      Slicing off several large chunks for himself he sat down and slowly ate, feeling himself relax and the aches dim as his body adjusted, finishing the plate he walked over to the bar and looked for Jane again.
       She flounced past with a handful of mugs and looked at him curiously as he caught her attention with a wave.
       “I’m going out to look round the forest and learn the area so I’ll need some food along for the trip, Can I take the leftovers with me?”, he smiled innocently at the ba