The damned dragon.
I didn’t even want Betty touching me and I shrugged her off when she tried to comfort me. I went to my old, empty room and sat on the bare floor while I stewed. Within a very short time I had a plan. My stubborn resolve kept me from returning to Tahr and removing his thing anyway. If I died this night, the dragon could live with the guilt. He deserved it for being so stupid. And to think he once called me an idiot. He loves me, he just doesn’t deserve me. The Goddess has shown me the way and this will prove it.
All noise in the human tower stopped an hour ago and still I wait. I’m not afraid. If I die, so be it. Death is better than living without Tahr. When I feel it’s time, I stand and slowly remove my dress. I walk through my door and Mikael is resting in the hall. His eyes widen when he sees me. I can see that he wants to stop me, but my nakedness throws him off. I point my finger toward his thing and bare my very human teeth. He follows but not too close.
I walk up the stairs past the men’s rooms and out on the upper tower perch. I hear movement behind me as I near the ledge and I bat Mikael’s hand off my arm when he tries to grab me. I take a last look across the castle at Tahr’s bedroom perch. As if I’ve conjured him, he walks out on his ledge. I see a silver spark and know he’s aware of what I’m doing. He’ll never reach me in time.
He yells and I smile. Whatever he says, it’s too late. I dive. The wind slides over my flesh and the burning sensation takes hold of me again. It builds and it feels as if my entire body is eaten by flames. The pain stops my breath. I’ve almost died of cancer, crossed realms, and been cast aside by a dragon. I can handle pain.
The clap of thunder in the sky is deafening and my body is ripped apart and reformed. It hurts, but I extend my newly formed wings and stop myself from crashing into the ground below the tower. With unstable exertion, I flap my wings and rise higher. I point my elongated nose into the air and shoot upward.
“You only had to believe,” the Goddess’s voice whispers into my head.
I laugh and expel fire from my nose and mouth. And not just fire… sound. I roar with my amazing abilities and glory in my new form. Then, I remember Tahr. His thoughts connect with mine and I see him gazing down, most likely looking for my body.
“No, I’m not there, you damned dragon. I’m up here where I belong,” I bellow telepathically.
Our gazes lock. He’s not worthy of me and I spew flames into the night sky. “You gave me to another, you miserable excuse for a slimy, silver lizard,” I shout into his mind. I turn toward the closest moon and fly away from Tahr and his stupid castle.
“Pepper,” he yells. “Where are you going? Come back here at once,” he demands.
“If you come near me, I’ll bite off your cock, spit it out, and burn it with dragon fire. Stay away from me… forever.” I don’t need him. I am dragon. I have a voice and I am free.
“You can’t leave me; you’re mine.”
“If you crawl on your belly and beg, I still won’t have you.”
“No,” he thunders.
I don’t even bother replying. I charge through the night seeing everything in a new array of color. I’m actually surprised Tahr doesn’t follow. I’m so angry with him. Truthfully, I have nowhere to go and that only makes me angrier. So, I fly simply for the joy of flying. It also occurs to me that I don’t know if I can change back to human. I’m afraid to think about it too hard or it may happen while flying. What triggers it? I need a dragon handbook.
I turn my neck and sway slightly because I’m unaccustomed to my size. I gain my balance and try again. I’m surprised to see my scales are yellow. This makes me laugh. I’m a yellow dragon—the color of the sun and also daisies. I’m beautiful. I raise my front leg, tilt slightly as I do it, and examine my black talons. They’re long and sharp. I whip my tail around and it smashes upside my head. Yep, it’s there and I need to learn to control it.
Within another hour, my wings tire and my back muscles ache. I refuse to return to Tahr’s lair. I slow down and try catching downdrafts to keep from having to work so hard to stay in the air. The sun rises and I realize I have no idea where I am. Out of nowhere, a blinding pain hits me. My body seizes and there’s a very real possibility I’m going down. The pain ends as suddenly as it began and I know I’ve crossed a realm. This is something else I know nothing about and it would all be much easier if I had a way to get answers.
I continue flying and notice two large shapes looming in the distance. They’re dragons. As I draw closer, I see the larger one is red and the smaller blue. I believe the red dragon is the young one who came with his parents two weeks ago and wanted to know what made me so special. Perfect. They turn their attention my way and follow me as I head for a large field below me to land.
Unfortunately, I’m clumsy and end up skidding several feet with my nose in the dirt. I dig my talons in to finally stop myself. The damage is done with dirt filling my nose and mouth. Coughs and sneezes escape my large jaws which causes smoke and fire to shoot from my throat and that only causes more coughing. The laughter of the two young dragons doesn’t help in the least.
“See, Cantor, I told you she can’t hurt us. She doesn’t even know how to land without skinning her nose,” the larger red dragon says to the blue one. “Who are you?” the red dragon asks with an air of superiority.
“I’m Pepper,” I finally say after another fire-breathing cough.
“You are Uncle Tahr’s mate?” he asks in disbelief.
“No, not his mate. I’m just a dragon. A very special dragon,” I say because I remember what he said the first time I met him.
“Hmm.” A thin trail of smoke leaves his nostrils. “I am Ashrac and this is Cantor. Our fathers have gone to Tahr’s because they felt the presence of a new dragon and they think Tahr has mated. That is the only way for a female to transcend, so I think you have your facts wrong.”
Oh really. “I am not mated to Tahr and I don’t even like him. I’m sorry that he is your uncle, but he’s a jerk and don’t wish to ever see him again.”
The younger dragon peeks around Ashrac. “Why is she so ugly? She should be silver like Uncle Tahr.”
I don’t allow Ashrac to answer. “I’ve said I’m not Tahr’s mate, and yellow is not ugly, it’s beautiful like the sun and certain flowers.”
“If you say so,” Cantor replies and I wonder if all male dragons are this rude.
Yes, they are. They’re all the same.
“It is a rather strange color for a dragon,” Ashrac adds.
I can’t believe I’m standing here defending my color to two boys. “I will ignore your rudeness and the insult you’ve given me if you tell me what I must do to change to human.”
“You don’t know?” Ashrac asks with an arrogant huff.
“If I knew, I wouldn’t ask. If the two of you handsome dragons would be so kind and teach me, I would appreciate it.” They roll their eyes and I guess they aren’t as gullible as I suspected.
“You’re in Uncle Sarn’s realm,” Cantor replies. “We fly here because Uncle Sarn lives in the earth realm with his mate and his castle is haunted.”
“Shh,” Ashrac snaps. “It’s not truly haunted.”
“You said it was,” Cantor replies sullenly.
“I was only teasing.” He glances at me and shakes his large head. “It would be best if you went back to Uncle Tahr. He will teach you what you need to know.”
Heat rises up my throat at the mention of returning to Tahr. “I do not belong to your Uncle Tahr. I am my own dragon and will go anywhere I choose. If you won’t help me, I will find someone who will.”
Cantor steps forward and puffs up his chest. “My mother will burn you with dragon fire if you get close to her nest. She’s very cranky right now and it would be a shame if you sizzled on your first day as a dragon.”
That makes me laugh, and fire mixed with black smoke pours from my nose. The two dragons jump back. “So sorry,” I cough. I breathe in too quickly and it’s having
a domino effect as I sneeze and release more flames and smoke.
Ashrac and Cantor start laughing again and when I can finally breathe; I join in, which makes my smoke thicker and my fire brighter. Another coughing fit takes hold.
“He can’t breathe fire yet,” Cantor says when I’m finally able to stop hacking.
“I’ll be able to very soon,” Ashrac grumbles and then he sighs. “I guess we can teach you a few things. I would hate for you to burn off your tail.” He ducks as my uncontrolled tail flies at my head. “Think of your human body and pull in your magic. It’s easy, and that’s how you shift.”
“My magic?”
“Yes, it takes magic to be dragon.”
I think about that. I can feel the same tingling awareness that I got from touching Tahr. It’s all around me now. I do as Ashrac suggests and the next second I’m human. And naked. I quickly turn my back to the boys and feel heat creep up my neck when they giggle. I pull the magic in again and return to my yellow dragon form. “Thank you for that lesson, but I need clothes before I try it again,” I say quickly trying to cover my embarrassment.
“You’re funny,” Cantor laughs. “And you sound like Ashrac’s mother.”
“My mother and her rules,” Ashrac grumbles and rolls his large red eyes. “Uncle Sarn’s lair has clothes. The castle is pretty much a mess, but his bedroom isn’t too bad. Would you like us to show you?”
“Yes, please.”
Ashrac and Cantor call out instructions, so my launch is slightly better than my landing. The three of us fly to Sarn’s castle. I’m exhausted by the time we arrive and my entire body aches. I refuse to complain, especially to these boys. We enter Sarn’s room from his tower perch. Most of what I’ve seen of the castle is a crumbled mess, but when I peek inside the room, it’s intact just quite dusty.
Ashrac gives me a flash of his amazingly large teeth. “There are some of Uncle Sarn’s old clothes in his garment room. I don’t think they’ll fit, but you can try. I must return Cantor to his father’s realm or we will be in trouble and his mother will come after us with her battle ax.”
Surely he’s joking. “Oh… okay. Umm, thank you for your help. I’ll stay here if you don’t think your Uncle Sarn will mind.”
“I don’t think he’ll mind.” They launch gracefully from the perch and fly away after I thank them profusely for their help.
When they’re completely out of sight, I shift and enter the room. The clothes are covered in dust too. I shake out a large shirt and put it on. It doesn’t smell too bad and it hangs to my knees. Next, I shake the dust from the top cover of the bed and lie down. I’m tired but I want to try something.
“I am dragon,” I whisper into the room. I hear my stilted throaty words and I say it again louder. Then, I close my eyes, too tired to even think about speech or my empty stomach.
Chapter Seventeen
Tahr
She’ll return soon. She is mine and will not be able to stay away. Plus she has nowhere to go. I will give her this time of adjustment because I need time to think too.
I’m still in shock that she transcended. Even more so that she’s yellow. It makes no sense. She should be silver like me—majestic silver to represent the royal silver dragons. Bastian’s mate is red and Laryn’s is blue—end of story. Or it should be. My mate is yellow.
An hour later, I haven’t rationalized what has happened and I’m still waiting. I sense when Bastian and Laryn cross my realm and hope they are able to supply answers.
“Where is she and who is she?” Bastian asks as soon as he’s within telepathic range.
“Tahr, you sneaky devil, you did it,” Laryn adds.
They will have a field day with this, so I wait for them to land. I beckon them inside with a wave of my hand and stomp angrily into my room. I look back and forth between my friends and grit my teeth as I explain, “Pepper left me as soon as she transcended.” I sit down and they both take large chairs across from me. The entire story pours out, though a moment later I’m up and pacing unable to keep still.
“She’s yellow,” Bastian and Laryn say in unison.
They are stuck on the same fact that I am. “Yes, yellow.”
Laryn thrums his fingers on his knee for a moment before he looks up and asks, “Is it at least a pretty yellow?”
Beautiful, gorgeous, and sexy are more apt descriptions. “Of course she’s pretty, but the fact remains she isn’t silver. What the hell does that mean?”
Bastian looks thoughtful for a moment. “You have bedded her, right?”
That pisses me off. And the fact that he’s the one who warned me away. I fist my hands at my sides to keep from wrapping them around Bastian’s throat. “I think you’re forgetting that you not so nicely reminded me that she’s forbidden.” I kick a table I knocked over earlier. “It was damned hard to keep my hands off of her… well, my cock out of her. But I did and I’m such a fool.”
“She’s not your mate,” Laryn whispers.
It’s the thought that’s been running through my mind since she left me. How could she transcend and not be my mate? I just can’t speak the words aloud. This can’t be happening.
Bastian’s eyes glow red and I can tell he’s disturbed. “Do you love her, Tahr?”
“Hell.” I begin pacing again. “I think I do.”
“Then you don’t truly love her,” Bastian replies. “Love is not a thinking matter, it’s one of the heart.
Well, I need to think about it! “Meagan has only been gone seven and a half months.” I lower my head and look at my feet. “I still miss her. Arrgh,” I yell and practically pull out a chunk of my hair. “My mate is yellow.” I plop back down in my chair and rest my elbows on my knees holding my head in my hands. “What have I done to deserve this?” For some reason it becomes clear.
My uncle.
The silver dragons are damned. Of course Pepper isn’t silver. She is good and kind. Funny and witty. She doesn’t deserve the tarnished stain that comes with my royalty.
“We need to find her,” says Laryn. “What if she goes near Roxy?”
Bastian stands up and looks at me. “Do you think she could travel that far on her first day as dragon?”
I jump to my feet. “We can’t chance it,” I yell as I run outside and launch from my perch. The three of us head to Laryn’s realm while so many thoughts swirl through my head. I truly care for Pepper, but never saw her as a bride much less a mate. She passed the time and kept my sadness at bay. She deserved someone who loved her, so I gave her away to another man. What the hell is wrong with me? My silver scales make me the biggest fool. I’ve wrapped my royal lineage around me like a cloak for so long. Even when only four of us remained, the pride that was instilled in me as a child persisted. Now my mate is a yellow dragon. Can life be anymore fucked up than this?
We see Ashrac and Cantor first. It’s been more than a year since I’ve seen the young, blue dragon. He’s growing quickly. And Roxy is having another. I envy Laryn so much it hurts.
“Father, Father,” Cantor shouts as we draw closer. “She is an ugly, yellow dragon and she doesn’t know how to land or launch or shift or…or.... We taught her how to shift and it’s not fair that she can breathe fire on her first day as dragon. I want to breathe fire too.”
“Where is she?” I demand more sternly than I meant to.
“Watch it, Tahr,” Laryn utters.
“Sorry,” I mumble under my breath.
Ashrac answers, “We took her to Uncle Sarn’s castle. She wanted clothing and she was very tired. Why is she yellow, Father?”
“We aren’t sure,” Bastian replies. “She didn’t try to harm you boys, did she?”
“No, she was very nice, even when we laughed at her. She’s quite funny, though strange looking. Do you think she’s a mutation?”
Bastian wallops Ashrac with his tail. “No. And you read too many horror novels. She’s a yellow dragon, a new color. She’s… special.”
“Special and ugly,”
Ashrac whispers, but we all hear him. His father growls and Ashrac is quiet after that.
At least I know where she is. “I will go retrieve her and take her back to my lair,” I tell them.
“You might try asking her,” Laryn says. “A female dragon is not someone you want to boss around. I’ve discovered that the hard way.”
“I agree with Laryn. You need to ask her and explain how things are. Don’t make her angry.”
How the hell do I not make her angry? It’s what I’m best at when it comes to Pepper. I leave them and fly to Sarn’s lair. Somehow I will convince Pepper to be my mate. Even if I don’t love her, I care for her and she is mine.
Chapter Eighteen
Pepper
Claws scraping against the outer perch wake me from dreams of kissing Tahr. I can feel his magic and know he has come for me. Tahr’s magic is slightly different from Ashrac’s and Ashrac’s is different from Cantor. There’s no time to process my feelings right now because a large silver head pokes through the window.
I have a voice now, though I’m not yet ready to communicate with croaky words while I learn to use it properly. Telepathic words are much easier. “What are you doing here, Tahr?” I manage to keep my tone level without strong emotion coming through.
His head disappears and I feel a more intense burst of magic as he shifts. He enters naked. I can’t talk to him this way. I crave touching him. I want to throw myself into his arms. I do exactly the opposite and jump from the bed and march into Sarn’s garment room. I storm out and toss a dusty pair of pants at the wide-eyed dunderhead.
“You’ve seen me unclothed,” he says in consternation while his eyes travel over every inch of my legs that the shirt doesn’t cover.
Dragons Live Forever Page 10