It sounds like tonight is going to fun for them.
As always, I feel safe in Cayd’s arms. I wasn’t sure what the energy was that I was feeling in the forest, but Cayd seems to understand it. As we watch, I see creatures of all shapes and sizes coming out of the woods, some with wings, some with hooves, some with claws. Some stay in the trees, some stay on the ground, some float in the air nearby, but all of them are watching us.“Watching you,” Cayd says softly in my ear. “Lily’s a werewolf and I’ve been here before. You, however, are new to them and I’m guessing, much like Aolis and Ailduin, they can feel your magic.”“What do they want?” I ask.“I’m sure they’re curious about you.”“Should I say something?” I ask, but it’s GoldMoon who answers, stepping out of the forest.‘They merely want to feel your energy,’ she says in my mind.“Can you hear her?” I ask Cayd.“Yes, she included me in her mind link to you.”“Do I give off a good energy?” I ask.'It’s a beautiful energy. Untainted by the harshness of reality,' Lucero says, coming f
I love how Madelyn’s body responds to me. Now it’s not just her orgasms, but her body’s light, her dragon’s light, responding to me too.But now, it feels like her light is moving through my body, attaching itself to me. The more I make her come, the brighter her light becomes and the more I feel it sliding through me. It’s addictive and intense and I as my body jerks with the most incredible orgasm I’ve ever had, I understand the feeling that Madelyn was having, the out of body experience where she felt like her soul and her body separated, both floating in the air. The pleasure is beyond anything I’ve ever experienced. Her smell, her taste, her sweet sounds, her mind, and her light encompass me. I’ve never felt more desired, more appreciated, more wanted, or more connected.Her light swirls around my body, wrapping itself around me, binding itself to me. I never want this moment to end, never want to stop feeling this sensation, this closeness to Madelyn. I have no idea what it will
There was no question that Cayden would sleep in the same bed as me last night. And while I appreciate his desire that I know myself before giving myself to him, technically, I already have. That’s what it feels like anyway and it’s what King Ailduin said.But that doesn’t mean that he didn’t want to sleep with me curled in his arms. It’s been a very, very long time since I slept this soundly. I feel safe, warm, and happy curled up with him. Although he did explain that werewolves body heat runs higher than a human’s body temperature, I never got too hot. His body temperature felt perfect to me.I snuggle against him as I wake, feeling his hard length pressing into my back.“How’d you sleep?” he asks, sounding much more awake than someone who just woke up.“Best sleep I’ve had in forever,” I tell him. His arms are stroking my body in a way that has heat pooling in my core. “How long have you been awake.”“A while. I’ve been enjoying having you in my arms, watching you sleep….listening
I watch a series of emotions go over my mate’s face when I tell her that I think she somehow blessed GoldMoon and Lucero with pregnancies. As the last of their kind, there would never be another way to have a next generation of special creatures. Unless my mate could do it.“How would that even work?” she asks.“The magic of dragons,” King Ailduin says, walking into the room with Anastasia. “I think Alpha Cayden might be right. Not only did you bond yourself to him without realizing it, but you saw the plants when you left the forest last night.”“Right, but they were glowing. Lucero and GoldMoon weren’t glowing when I left them,” Madelyn says.“No, but dragon magic always made the world a better place. The air was cleaner, the earth was more fertile and more stable. Things like earthquakes and volcanic eruptions were less frequent than they are now. The earth flourished, bloomed and blossomed anywhere dragons lived. People were healthy and lived good lives, free from disease or crippl
“This is a lot,” I say, rubbing my eyes. These books are huge. Cayd suggested that I take one and he take one. A lot of what is written in them is the same, it’s about the lineage of the dragon line that goes back for centuries.Both tell stories of how they met the elves, the giants and all of the supernatural creatures, and then it begins talking about the humans. At first, everything went well. Dragons and humans bonded and became the dragons and riders that you read about in fantasy novels. It makes me wonder how many of those books are an accurate or close to accurate description of what life was really like back in those days.It was when they met the humans and began bonding themselves that their stories change. The Falkor line only bonded to women. The were the Guardians of all women, but primarily those who they were bonded to and their daughters. Draches, on the other hand, were the Protectors of men. They only bonded to men and they protected the one they were bonded to and
I can tell that all of this is beginning to overwhelm Madelyn. It was a lot to begin with and it just keeps piling on.“Hey, why don’t we go for a run. We can go see the giants and Hope. Baron would love to run with you on his back again,” I say, watching her face. She might need some rest instead of an invigorating run, but she seems happy with anything that will get us out of this room.I see Buppig and Lily about to argue, but Madelyn has had enough for the day.“Why don’t you two speak to Aolis and Ailduin about what we’ve discussed, get their impressions. Madelyn needs to step away. Remember, she’s learning all of this about herself in just a couple of days. It’s a lot," I tell them.“Of course, Madelyn. You must think I’m a terrible Queen,” Lily says to her.“Not at all. I think you’re everything a queen should be, smart and beautiful and caring,” Madelyn says.Lily smiles. “I can see why King Ailduin was so taken with the dragons. You really do have a pure soul, don't you? Hopef
The giants are sweet. Okay, they’re a little scary, but I can feel their excitement to have a dragon in their midst again.A dragon. I guess I’ve accepted that I have dragon blood. It’s hard not to here, where everything feels magical and safe and loving. Okay, maybe that’s mostly Cayden that feels that way, but it still adds to the overall magic of Araphyra.When I’m done, Cayd shifts back into Baron and I wave at my new friends, the giants. Then I climb onto Baron’s back and howl. That’s another silly thing that I love doing. Howling with Baron. His answering howl is instantaneous and I grip his fur as he takes off again.This time, there are no woodland creatures flying with us. Cayd mentioned that Hope lives if the taboo land and no fae go there, not even Lucero, who stays back as we run forward. When Baron slows down, it’s eerily quiet. Unlike the woods in Araphyra and even back in Cayd’s family’s pack, the aren’t any sounds in the forest. No birds, no crickets, nothing. Just quie
My mate still has no idea how incredible she is or how much power she has. Thankfully, she uses her powers for good.I tune into her mind as Baron runs. She loves riding on his back and howling with him. When we pass the trench with the giants, she howls at them and they raise their giant fists into the air, pumping in their version of a hello, I guess.Once we’ve passed the trench, the woodland creatures join us and my mate, my wolf, and all the woodland creatures begin howling again.When we get close enough to the castle, I hear Hera, Lily’s wolf, howling a welcome to us and we all howl again.My mate is laughing as Baron slows to a stop, letting her slide off our back. Lily smiles at her as I shift and pull on clothes.“Did you have a nice time?” Lily asks.“We did,” Madelyn says.“You could have told me that you’ve been sparring with Hope much more frequently,” I growl at Lily.“Where’s the fun in that?” Lily asks, unable to hide her smile. I knew she did it on purpose, hoping I’d
Four Years Later“Daddy, who are we waiting for?” my oldest daughter, Theia, stage-whispers to my mate.I see him glance at me from the corner of his eye and I know what he’s going to do before he does it. He whisper-yells right back.“We’re waiting for Tate if he ever gets his poop together and comes out.”I see a flash of light and I know that Tate heard him. Cayd and Tate have always been close and that hasn’t changed in the five years that Cayd and I have been together.Now that Tate has turned nineteen, he decided to take over their family’s coven. He waited a year, wanting to spend some time with his new mate, Daphne, before making it official. Now, his sweet little mate and their beautiful sprite daughter are sitting in the front row, right in front of us, watching as Tate is about to take over as warlock of his coven.“What’s he doing with his poop?” my third child and first son, Idris, asks.Cayd always wanted to name our first son after his father, since none his other siblin
Eleven months laterWhat a difference a year makes! From the moment that my mate ran into my arms, my life felt like it was going full-throttle into my future, a future that still looks so bright and beautiful I can hardly stand it.‘You always say that,’ my sweet mate says in my mind. That’s just one of many things that have changed in the last year. My mate’s ability to mind link me and use her enhanced senses has improved significantly.‘My future is you. And you, my love, are bright and beautiful,’ I tell her. I hear the soft purr in her mind, the emotions of her dragon that has strengthened in the last year. Every time we go to Araphyra, it gets stronger.As I expected, all of the dragons stayed in Araphyra. They created their own village or clan or whatever they call it in the mountain ranges that Lily, Silas, and Tamsyn found. Most of them have created their homes there, although some made their permanent residence in Araphyra. Samlael’s mate, Mevnenth, stayed in Araphyra and Sa
Everything here in Araphyra is so magical, and now, all of these dragons get to feel it too. I lean into Cayd as we watch Silas and Tamsyn find their families. I watch as the sprites, even the ones from Araphyra who don’t know the dragons, all sniffle and wipe their eyes. I watch as Anastasia hugs Ailduin, looking up at him and wiping a tear from his face.“Today is a good day,” I whisper to Cayd.“Yes it is. And there are many, many more for us and them,” he says, wrapping his arms more tightly around me.“Okay, everyone,” Lily says, wiping her own tears. “We have so much to show you. First, I think we should show you to your rooms. You are welcome here as long as you want to stay, but Silas, Tamsyn, and I found a place here in Araphyra, in a different land, where you might be more comfortable. There are mountain ranges there and I understand that’s where you were living before. Once you’re settled, we’ll show you around, and let you begin to connect with your magic. Araphyra is a mag
It takes a lot to get everyone into the vans and to the jetliner, but we make it work. Thankfully, there are enough leaders among the dragons to help keep things moving and since the really young dragons left yesterday, it makes it that much easier to get everyone settled.Rich sent the two pilots and several flight attendants to help us, and he also made sure the plane was stocked with food and beverages. The biggest surprise was seeing my parents, Reagan, and Meadow. They came out to assist in any way that was needed.As soon as my father saw the sprite mates, he burst out laughing. “The sprites strike again. Hello, I’m Alpha Liam,” he introduced himself to everyone. My mother introduced herself and, in her way, gently touched the dragons as they boarded the plane. I could tell that many of them could feel her aura as it touched theirs. Since they haven’t come into their magic fully yet, I’m sure it feels weird to them, almost like an awakening inside themselves. That’s what it felt
As cold as it is here in the mountains, there is steam coming from the hot springs. “Oh! How wonderful.”My grandmothers join me in the springs, showing me what they use to bathe themselves, using sand and scents found in the woods to scrub and scent their skin. Maybe that’s where the wild scents come from, or maybe, just like the wolves, it’s because of who we are.They ask me more about Araphyra and I tell them while we soak and then dry off using more plants to help absorb the water off our bodies. Once we’re dressed, we return to the fire. Cayd is back and is helping get this first group in the van. When he sees me, he comes jogging over.“I spoke to Rich. He’s getting a jetliner for us tomorrow. We need to talk to everyone by tonight and get their agreement to come back, but I also need more vans. Do you want to come with me or talk to the rest of the clan members?” He stops, leaning in and growling softly. “I like this wild scent on you. What is that?”“It’s what the dragons here
I don’t remember falling asleep, but I do remember feeling completely overwhelmed. When I wake up, it’s still dark outside but I feel my mate wrapped around me and the fire is in front of me again. I smile, thinking about how my mate always takes care of me.I carefully sit up, looking around the fire. Many of the dragons stayed to sleep here with us. It makes me glad and hopeful that they’ll all go to Araphyra and stay together.“He really loves you, doesn’t he?” my grandmother Camrys asks from across the flames.I look down at my sleeping mate. Somehow, after I sat up, he wrapped his body around me, still protecting me and keeping me warm, even in his sleep. Or maybe it’s Baron keeping watch over me. Either way, it makes me feel so loved and cherished.“Yes, he does. And I love him. When we marked and mated, I wasn’t sure what would happen or what it would be like. But I’m able to feel his emotions and hear his thoughts, although I’m not very good at it. I’m still surprised when I he
I watch my mate crying with her family. As much as I hate seeing her cry, I know these are good tears. I turn and look at Toddre.“Thank you.”“I wasn’t sure. I didn’t want to say anything, just in case I was wrong. But the ages match. I’m pretty sure Silas and Tamsyn have family here too. They’ll want to see them.”“We will make that happen,” I say, turning back to my mate as she and her grandparents pull back, one of her grandmothers wiping the tears from her eyes.“Oh, you have to meet my mate. This is Alpha Cayden,” she says, excitedly, turning to me.“You’re a wolf?” Qeddryn growls.“I am. But I’m not like the ones who did this to Madelyn or the others,” I say. “My family is blessed by the Moon Goddess. We, well the women in our families, are Guardians, much like Madelyn and the others in the Falkor line.”As we’re talking, more dragons begin approaching us. The ones from the hatching grounds, or as they call them now, the birthing grounds, also come to join us. For the rest of th
I never would have thought sleeping on the ground would be comfortable or that I could be warm in the mountains in winter, but with a fire in front of me and Cayd behind me, I slept great and stayed toasty warm all night.When I open my eyes, I see Toddre putting wood on the fire. “What time is it?” I ask.“Early. I’d say around 5am. You’re probably a bit jet-lagged so it might feel later to you.”I look around, seeing Torin, his body covered with sprites, and Avalon, with her body much the same. “Where are the others?” I ask.Toddre smiles. “Well, Dragon Fierce Lover went to see his mate,” he says chuckling. I laugh with him. The sprites’ names for the dragons are cute. It made me wonder what my name would have been.“Dragon Warm Heart left right after you fell asleep. Something about licking and not needing to choose one mate. He hasn’t re-emerged, so that should be interesting. And Dragon Grumpy Pants also went into the woods with his sprites, although much later.”I feel Cayd’s lip
I feel the dragons relax as we sit. That doesn’t mean that I feel safe enough to let Madelyn out of my reach, so I tuck her against my side, keeping an arm wrapped tightly around her. I stay quiet as she tells the story of what happened to her, how she got away, how she met me, and then of our experience in Araphyra.When she’s done, they look at Torin and Avalon whose stories are nearly identical.“There are two more. We left them in Araphyra. They’re younger and I think all of us felt the need to keep them where they are safe,” I tell them.Orsid, the leader, looks at me. “What was that thing you said about sprites. You mentioned it and then Madelyn mentioned it too.”“Do you not know that your forest is filled with sprites?” I ask them, amazed.They all look at each other again.“Our forest is haunted. That’s why we’ve been safe from humans. They don’t come here. Especially on windy days and nights, you can hear the ghosts voices on the wind,” Ronnon says.“Those are no ghosts,” I s