“Deliver to me the princess or I shall slay you where you stand!” Aaron had finally found the lair of the dread beast that had kidnapped the princess. Months of searching had finally led to this moment. He had his enchanted sword, his fireproof shield. He’d accounted for every factor except for one...

The dragon was hot.

The dragon stepped out of the cavern in a humanoid form. Green scales covered his muscular body, and he was dressed in an elegant robe. His face was chiseled, but in a way that implied wisdom as well as strength. Brown plates ran from his forehead down his spine. Aaron had not expected him to be handsome. Everyone had told him that he would be facing a massive beast, not this!

The dragon raised an eyebrow at him, “Can I help you?”

“I- um...”

The dragon sighed and pinched his nose, “great. I’m dealing with a babbling idiot.”

Aaron blushed. “N-no! I um...” he fidgeted with his sword, '' I'm here for the drag- princess!”

The dragon gave him a suspicious look, “There aren’t any drag princesses here. Just a regular one who ran away from home.”

Aaron blushed again. He was an idiot. “Um, y-yeah. She’s the one I’m here for.”

The dragon squinted at him, then shrugged. It turned and waved Arron into the cave. Aaron followed nervously. What was happening to him?! Had the dragon cast some sort of spell on him!? Why was he infatuated with a dragon!?

Every question he had faded from his mind as soon as he stepped into the main room of the dragon’s lair. There wasn’t a massive pile of gold and jewels as he had been led to expect, there wasn’t a massive pile of anything. Instead the interior of the cave had been expertly carved into the shape of a grand cathedral, with elegant carvings taking the place of paintings, and light somehow shining through stained glass windows set into the rock. Aaron couldn’t help but stare, awestruck at the intricacies. It was so similar to the chapel where he’d taken his oaths. But somehow even more beautiful.

A shocked voice brought him out of his stupor. “Aaron!? What in the name of holy hells are you doing here!?”

Aaron saw the princess who he had been sent to rescue, as well as his bride to be, Elora, dressed in a simple, yet elegant gown, coming towards him. 

“I... um... Hi Elora.” Elora paused, looked Aaron up and down, and turned to the dragon.

“Lirin, did you do something to him?”

The dragon gave her an expression of shocked confusion, “What? No. He was babbling like this when I went out to see who he was.”

Elora gave one of her traditional glares to the dragon. “Aaron is one of the most bullheaded people I know. I heard what he said before you went out to investigate, so what happened?”

“Elora, I swear, I didn’t do anything. I walked out and he just started staring at me and babbling like an idiot.”

Elora looked back at Aaron, who was now blushing furiously and looking rather embarrassed, then back to Lirin, then back to Aaron again. She thought for a moment, then started to chuckle, which quickly turned into her howling on the floor with laughter.

Aaron and Lirin’s gazes met with a confused look at what was transpiring.

“Uh... Elora? What’s so funny?” 

She took a few deep breaths before being calm enough to speak again. “You seriously developed a crush on Lirin five seconds after meeting him?”

“What?! No!!” I just-

“Don’t even try it. I’ve seen how you look at the stable boys.”

Aaron began stuttering out a poor explanation before Elora quieted him again. He sighed and tried again. “Elora, I’m engaged to you. I can’t be-”

“Aaron, you’ve never had feelings for me and we both know it.”

Aaron opened and closed his mouth several times, but nothing came out. It was the truth. He’d only gone ahead with the marriage because it was what was expected of him as a paladin. He’d have been excommunicated from the order if anyone had found out the truth.

It was at that moment that he saw Lirin pretending not to be looking in his direction. The scales on his face had turned a shade redder.

Aaron began to blush again, and Elora smiled smugly at the fact that she was, once again, completely right. She turned and began walking towards the entrance.

“Since my father obviously expects me to be returning soon, I’ll be going. Thanks for letting me stay here for a while Lirin!” Lirin gave her an awkward wave, “and I’m stealing your horse Aaron.”

“What? Why?!”

Elora turned and gave an impish grin. “Because you two need some time to get to know each other,” she began posing dramatically, “and I must return with the horrible tale of how gravely you were injured in the fight, so I had to leave you at the cottage of a witch in the mountains to ensure that you would heal.” she giggled and dashed out of the cave, calling over her shoulder, “and there’s nothing you can do to stop me!!!”

“Elora, wait!” Aaron started to dash out to try and catch Elora, but Lirin caught his arm. He turned, blushing slightly, and saw Lirin shaking his head

“You must know that her calling you bullheaded was a bit of hypocrisy on her part, right?”

“Uh... i- um...” Aaron stammered. Lirin smirked.

“Feeling eloquent today, aren’t we?”

Aaron gulped. Why couldn’t he make out a simple sentence around this creature? He- he couldn’t be attracted to a dragon of all things! What would the priesthood think!?

Lirin began dragging him towards a side tunnel, and Aaron began to panic slightly.

“W-wait! I- you can’t!”

Lirin stopped and looked at him with a look of both confusion and slight annoyance. Aaron gulped again, but was able to stammer out a short explanation.

“I- I swore an oath of celibacy! You- I-”

Lirin facepalmed. “What kind of creature do you think I am? We only just met. I barely know you, and on top of that,” Lirin gave Aaron a grin that was both playful and predatory, '' I doubt you could take even an inch of what I’ve got.” 

Aaron gulped again. “So... you aren’t bringing me back to... your chambers?”

“Of course not!” Aaron hoped his relief wasn’t as visible as he feared it was, “Elora was helping me with a particularly intricate carving, and since your arrival sent her away, you get to help me finish it.” Lirin began dragging Aaron towards a section of wall that had an incomplete carving on it, then handed him a chisel and mallet.

Aaron looked at the tools, a feeling of stupidity washing over him. Lirin sighed.

“Let me guess. The only vaguely tool shaped thing you’ve ever held is that sword strapped to your side.”

Aaron nodded while making an attempt to hide within his own armor. Lirin simply rolled his eyes then took Aaron’s hands in his own, causing the paladin’s face to turn beet red.

Lirin Chuckled. “My my. Elora wasn’t kidding, was she?”

“W-what is that supposed to mean?” Lirin chuckled again while directing Arron’s hands.

“For all her spouting about -tap the chisel with the hammer- you not having any feelings for her, the girl does care about you. Not in any sort of -no, softer. You’ll crack the stone and it’ll be ruined- romantic way though. She speaks very highly of you, even if you -that’s it, work within the strata- are a bit clueless.”

Aaron’s hands froze. “What do you mean clueless?”

Lirin gave him a slightly exasperated look.

“W-what!? Why am I clueless?”

Lirin pulled away and began counting on his fingers, “let’s see... Elora’s been flirting with you since you were children -that’s how she figured out that you preferred men by the way- and I’ve been trying to flirt with you ever since she left.”

Aaron once again went beet red. “Y- you what?”

Lirin grinned again, but it was a much softer grin this time. Although, there was still plenty of mischief within it. “It’s not every day I get to meet someone with such an interesting story. And well, it helps that I think you’re rather handsome.”

Aaron began to splutter. Lirin thought he was handsome!? He’d- He’d never-

He’d never had anyone call him handsome before.

Aaron continued blushing, but it was much softer this time. It was no longer the flustered and confused thing it was before. He had to admit, Lirin was.... Charming.

Lirin chuckled, and once again took Aaron’s hands and guided them in chiseling the stone. Slowly, the shape of a person began to take shape. A young woman, running from something. No, maybe to something? There was a mischievous grin on her face now. That grin looked familiar though. Why was it-

Aaron stepped back. That was Elora. He turned to look at Lirin, intending to ask why he’d had him carve her, but stopped as he noticed that Lirin was standing back from him, simply watching.

Aaron looked down at the chisel and mallet in his hands. How long had he been going on his own? Lirin walked up to inspect Aaron’s work.

“It’s not the best work, but you’ve definitely taken to the stone quite well.” Lirin stepped back from the wall. “It seems she was incorrect about your feelings for her though. You quite clearly cared for her a great deal. Though, it appears you also knew she would never be happy as your bride, and nor would you be happy as her husband.”

Aaron stared at the stone face. Had he really known that? He’d kept telling himself that the marriage was for the best, even if he didn’t really love Elora like everyone said he should. That wasn’t to say he hadn’t tried. He’d spent many sleepless nights feeling guilty about this whole ordeal.

He looked at Lirin again. Was this really an option? Could he really just abandon everything he’d built up over the last ten years?

Then again, what exactly had he built? An arranged marriage where both parties would be miserable? A life of secrecy? A calling where he would be shunned or worse if the truth was revealed? What among all of that wasn’t worth giving up?

Especially for someone who actually liked him for who he was. He’d only just met Lirin, but he’d treated Aaron with more love and respect than he’d ever gotten from anyone aside from Elora. And that was after he’d been a bumbling idiot, so who knew what might be possible if he got this right?

But.... what if he got this wrong?

What if he screwed this up?

He’d have nothing to go back to. He’d be excommunicated from his order and made an outcast, and that was the best outcome. He was just as likely to be outright killed.

Aaron turned away from Lirin and began looking for a chair or low rock. He needed to sit down.

The clank of Aaron’s armor drew Lirin’s attention. Aaron hadn’t found anything suitable, so he’d just dropped himself on the floor next to a wall, and was now staring bleary-eyed at nothing.

Lirin quietly sat next to Aaron and put an arm around his shoulders. The pair sat in silence for a time, and Aaron eventually drifted into a light sleep in Lirin’s arms.

Elora was grinning like mad. She couldn’t help it. Not only had she just set her 2 best friends up with each other, she’d also found her way out of an arranged marriage she’d never wanted or agreed to.

She flicked the reins of Aaron’s horse again. Aaron hadn’t ever given the poor thing a proper name, so she’d taken to calling it Skyblood. It was a majestic and powerful name for a majestic and powerful horse.

She took another corner at speed. She loved the feeling of the wind flowing through her hair as she rode. She’d rarely been able to experience it before coming to visit Lirin. She’d spent most of her days cooped up in the castle, being taught stupid princess stuff like how to balance books on your head. 

She thought bookshelves worked better for storage purposes, but had gotten scolded for pointing that out.

Then one day, a few months ago, she’d had enough. This princess thing was stupid, and she didn’t want to do it anymore. So, she’d decided to go and tell her father that she wanted to do something else with her life. Something actually fulfilling.

All she’d gotten in response were baffled looks and, once again, sent to her room.

So, she’d run away.

It was surprisingly easy too. Nobody had bothered to watch the side of the tower she’d climbed down using a rope made from her bedsheets, nor had anyone bothered to watch the moat when she swam across it. It was almost as if they wanted her to escape.

And then she ran. Well, trekked would be a better word for it. The terrain around these parts wasn’t exactly conducive for running. Her family had gotten their wealth from mining, not farming, hunting, or any other sort of thing you could do only with lots of flat land.

The mountains had certainly covered her tracks well though. Well enough that she was hopelessly lost within a few hours. She’d tried to recall what foraging tips she could recall before her father took away her library key, but most of it had been crowded out by useless princess knowledge. 

She’d spent several days wandering around, trying her best to keep herself alive long enough to find another town, but it very quickly became obvious that unless someone found her, she wouldn’t make it very much longer.

But apparently Lady Fate had been watching her progress, because she’d found Lirin’s home that night. Lirin had been wary of her at first, given that humans didn’t exactly have a reputation as people that had good reason to walk into a dragon’s home, but after convincing him that she meant no harm to him or his carvings he’d been willing to let her stay with him.

Her ribs still ached a bit though. He hadn’t exactly been gentle about restraining her when she’d first arrived.

And then she’d just sort of stayed there. Lirin was good company and she could help him somewhat with his carvings. She wasn’t any good at the carving itself, several malformed attempts hidden in a back room were a testament to that, but she helped keep things clean while he worked and handed him tools and kept his ladder steady. Really very little payment in exchange for room and board, especially with a real life dragon.

Though, Lirin did spend an unfair amount of time in his humanoid form. Over the several months she’d stayed with him she’d only seen him in his full size form a few times. Each time was absolutely jaw droppingly incredible. Sadly, it had only been when he was going out for a while. Each time he said he had business to attend to, and then left for a day or 2. 

Aaron had better not get to see him in his full form more than she did. That just wouldn’t be fair.

She slowed Skyblood slightly as she went over a bit of a rough patch on the road back, then gazed over the ridgeline to the west. She could see the tops of the castle already. She sighed. She didn’t want to go back home. It would just go back to doing all of that idiotic princess crap again.

She supposed she could just come clean and tell her father that she’d run away, but that would probably cause more problems that it would solve, and potentially raise a number of uncomfortable questions about where Aaron was. No, it was best to just stick with the story she’d come up with originally. That would give Aaron enough time to figure things out with Lirin while still potentially giving him something to come home to if things didn’t work out for some reason.

She couldn’t deny that she was a bit jealous though.

If Lirin had been the sort that preferred women like most of the idiotic men at the castle, she would have been set for life. Who wouldn’t want a dragon for a romantic partner? You’d get to live with this awesome scaly sweetheart that would eat anyone who dared harass you. Plus, depending on what they hoarded, you’d get some pretty sweet gifts too.

But no, Aaron got to be the lucky one again. He got to be a knight while she had to be a princess. He got praised and awarded for his actions and she just got scolded and sent to her rooms. He got to have a dragon for a boyfriend and she had to choose from one of the stupid knights who would rather use her like a toy than actually court her.

It was enough to make her want to scream.

So she did. It didn’t help.

The scream eventually faded into just letting angry tears roll down her face. It just wasn’t fair. Why did Aaron get to have all the awesome stuff happen to him without trying? She’d been trying to have adventures for 20 years now but everything always got given to him without him even trying!

She slowed Skyblood and hopped off, fuming. She almost kicked a rock, but stopped herself just in time to not break her foot. So, she just sat down and cried into her hands instead.

It just wasn’t fair.

She eventually cried herself dry, and then just sat staring at the castle, with it’s stupid knights, and stupid father, and stupid towers.

Why did she have to be the princess? Couldn’t one of her sisters who was more suited for the task do it? What about Thalia? She loved this stuff! She could sit in ridiculous dresses, drink nasty tea, and talk your head off while saying absolutely nothing at all!

What was even the point of it all? To get married to some brutish idiot and have to treat him like a god for the rest of her life?

She sighed and continued staring off at the castle, lamenting the difficult choice before her. Did she return to that horrid life so that Aaron and Lirin could have a chance? Or did she finally take her life into her own hands and do what she wanted for a change?

The sounds of hoofbeats eventually pulled her out of her quiet contemplation. She looked down the road to see what looked like a massive slab of spiked metal astride another slab of spiked metal.

Elora let out an exasperated sigh. Of course Essius would have followed Aaron. The prick was always trying to one up Aaron in the stupidest ways possible, and Aaron, the clueless doofus that he was, had no idea that Essius even considered himself his rival.

Elora began trying to straighten herself out, but then paused. Maybe she could use this opportunity. It would certainly make for an interesting entrance.

That idea was immediately thrown out as soon as the brute opened his mouth.

“Did that pompous bastard abandon you all alone Elora? That’s just what I’d expect him to do.”

Elora gave another exasperated sigh. Essius took it as a sigh of relief at being saved

“Worry not, my lady. I shall gladly take up arms against that fool who dared to treat you in such a manner!”

Elora looked up at Essius, and had an idea.

“No Essius, I’m afraid that won’t work”

“What?”

“I have an urgent message to deliver to my father. I need to be able to get home as soon as possible.”

“What are you saying you need, my lady? Just ask and it shall be yours.”

“Give me your horse.”

Essius paused for a moment.

“My.... horse?”

“Yes, your horse. Did I not speak clearly last time?”

“No, my lady, you did, but-”

“Essius. I have little time for questions. Give me your horse so I can return to my father as quickly as possible.”

“But, my lady, I-”

“Essius! Horse! NOW!”

She rather enjoyed the horrendous clang that resulted after Essius tumbled from the saddle.

She strode over to the horse and began removing the ridiculous armor. Each piece making another clang as she chucked it on the ground. She could swear the horse gave her a grateful look when she removed the faceplate.

“Wha- Elora! What do you think you’re doing!?” Essius had begun trying to gather up the discarded bits of armor, turning him into even more of a porcupine than usual.

“The armor is too bulky. I need speed, not protection.”

Essius scoffed. “It doesn’t hinder his movement that much.”

Elora turned and glared at Essisus, then turned and pointed to a tree a fair distance away. “How about you go and run to that tree and back then? I’m sure it should be no problem for you if the armor isn’t too heavy”

Essius looked between Elroa’s glare and the tree, then eventually set off, his face red with frustration.

Elora returned to removing the armor, grateful for the moment of peace.

She’d gotten the last piece off and was readjusting the saddle when the clamor of clanging metal informed her of Essius’ return. There was a loud, clanging thud, and then just the sound of heavy breathing. Elora finished with the saddle, then turned to find Essius laying face up on the ground, panting.

“Well? How was your run?”

“I get.... Your point.”

“Good.” She swiftly mounted the horse, “Now, I must be off. Make sure Skyblood is taken good care of.”

“Wait! Elora!” Essisus slowly got to his feet, wheezing the whole time, “What about the dragon?”

“The dragon is dead, Essius. Aaron did his duty in dealing with the beast.” she hoped she was putting up a good act. She had gotten fairly good at lying, but because of her father’s knack for seeing through them, she was always on edge when doing so.

Essius finally stood up fully. “Where is he then? Shouldn’t he be taking you home, instead of leaving you to fend for yourself?”

Elora tried to act like she was holding back tears. This was going to be a complicated act to maintain. “Aaron did not escape unscathed. I was forced to leave him in the care of a local healer. That is why he is not currently with me.”

Essius fell silent.

“If that is everything, I really must be going, Essius.”

Essisus looked up to meet Elora’s gaze. There was a sinister glint in his eye. 

“Might I know where it is he’s staying so that I can check up on him? We wouldn’t want him to be all alone out there after all.”

Elora pretended to think for a moment. “No, you may not.”

She flicked her new ride’s reins and was off before Essius had a chance to respond.

She was only barely able to keep herself from laughing until she was out of earshot. That had been amazing. The way Essius had just bumbled about had felt incredibly gratifying.

Her mind turned once again to her lessons. Maybe there was a way to be able to make them bearable. Her father might be able to force her to attend, but he couldn’t make her do them the way he wanted. She’d attend the lessons, but she’d do them her way.

And one day, she’d find a dragon of her own. 

Aaron awoke with something warm and heavy pressed against him. It almost felt like a leathery blanket. It was... comfortable. Aaron almost drifted off to sleep, but then decided to crack open his eyes slightly to see what was covering him.

He saw light filtering through a green fleshy membrane, and began to panic slightly. Had Lirin-?! No! He wouldn’t- would he? How was he still alive if-?

The membrane lifted itself off of him, and a large green face came into view. Aaron looked up to see that the membrane had been Lirin’s wing, placed over him like, sure enough, a leathery blanket.

Aaron shifted nervously, and realized that he was still in his armor. When had he fallen asleep?

“Is something wrong?”

“I- um...”

Lirin placed his large head on Aaron’s lap. His big blue eye looking right at Aaron. Normally Aarron would have been frightened to be this close to a full dragon, but somehow, Lirin’s eyes felt comforting and safe. 

Aaron fidgeted in his armor a little. He should really have taken it off before falling asleep. It was really beginning to chafe.

“I um... I thought you...” Aaron’s voice quieted into a mumble

“You thought I what? Ate you?”

Aaron looked away from Lirin’s face and nodded, blushing.

“I know, I know. It’s stupid. I don’t even-” Lirin interrupted Aaron with a chuckle.

“No, no, I don’t blame you. There are many of my kind who wouldn’t have hesitated to take advantage of a free meal like this.” Aaron’s heart skipped a beat, “But you don’t have to worry. If I was going to eat you I would have already.” Lirin nuzzled Aaron’s chest. “I’m not the sort to eat cute things anyway.”

Aaron blushed again.

“You uh... you really think I’m cute?”

Lirin chuckled. “Your face is, at least. I still have yet to see the rest of you. That armor of yours leaves quite a lot to the imagination you know.”

Aaron began fiddling with his hands. “I um... I have been wanting to take it off. It isn’t meant to be worn for this long.”

“Already wanting to break that oath of celibacy?” Lirin chuckled.

“WHAT!? NO! I-”

Lirin put a claw over Aaron’s mouth in a shushing motion. “I was kidding you doofus. I know you’ve got padding underneath it, and I've got some regular clothes in another room if you want to change completely.”

Aaron nodded, then slowly stood. He should have changed out of this last night. There was chafing in some rather unfortunate areas.

Lirin pointed him towards a side room, where there was a change of clothes laid out for him on a table next to a rather large hot spring. Aaron began fiddling with the straps in his armor, then after being unsuccessful at reaching most of them, sighed and called out to Lirin.

Lirin peered into the room, and then changed into his humanoid form once Aaron explained what he needed. Lirin began carefully undoing the buckles of the armor and helping to remove the plates, carefully placing them aside. The process was longer than usual, Lirin pretty obviously had never dealt with armor like this before, and occasionally tried to loosen things that couldn’t be taken off until other parts had been removed. Eventually though, the final piece was removed, and Aaron was standing in just his gambeson, his face red as a beet.

Lirin put a hand on Aaron’s shoulder, “you want help removing this too?”

Aaron, hurriedly shooed his hand away, “N-no. I-I’m fine. You can leave now.”

“Are you sure?” Lirin reached out his hand again, ”I think it would be rather fun to-”

“NO!” Aaron pulled back from Lirin. “N-no. I’m fine. I don’t need your help anymore and I want some privacy.”

Lirin pulled his hand back, then silently nodded and left the room. 

Aaron finished undressing and got into the bath. It was the perfect temperature and all of his aches and pains slowly faded away as he eased himself into the hot water. Who would have thought that a pool in a cave would be so much better than any of the baths in the city?

However, as he settled into the water, so too did a sense of dread settle into him. What was he doing? Was he really about to abandon everything he’d worked for in order to go have a fling with a dragon? What was wrong with him!?

And why did it all feel so right?

Aaron looked over to the pile of clothes he’d left on the floor, then got up out of the bath and started rummaging through them, eventually pulling out a small silver pendant, which he put on as he got back into the bath.

He sat for a moment, then grasped the pendant in his hands and began to silently pray for some sort of answer. Was he insane? Would this actually work out? Why were these feelings present at all?

He wasn’t sure how long he’d sat there, clutching the amulet and desperately hoping for something. A feeling, a sign, anything.

But nothing came.

Aaron sighed and opened his eyes. Apparently he’d been in here so long the wildlife had thought he was a statue or something. A lizard of some sort and a rabbit were drinking from the pool side by side. Both of them ran off as Aaron slowly stood.

He trudged his way over to the clothes Lirin had left for him. They were simple, some cotton undergarments, a tunic, and some pants, but they were well made and comfortable, if a bit big.

Aaron walked out of the bath room, and saw Lirin in his full draconic form, working on something high up in the main cavern. He started walking towards him. If nothing else, Lirin’s presence was comforting. 

Aaron silently leaned against Lirin’s back leg. Lirin shifted slightly, but said nothing. Then, he wordlessly brought his tail closer to Aaron, as if to embrace him while not bothering him to speak.

Aaron looked up to see the face of the being he’d fallen for. He didn’t know why he felt like this, or what was going to happen to him.

But looking up and watching Lirin, he felt comforted.

Maybe he’d give it a chance. If his prayers were going unanswered, he’d just have to make a choice for himself.