Sorry it took a while to get the icon^^ but here it finally is =3

I hope you enjoy this chapter^^

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In the hall, Nick was walking in circle, nervous. He had just called Nina, a friend who also was the greatest dragon expert he knew, to ask to come and check the state of Lynara’s hatchling.
In a moment of fear, caused by his only appearance, the baby dragon had run away in the city, and had been bullied by three disgusting men, probably drunk. One of these awful guys had pulled on her wings before he could intervene, and he was worried about it. Dragons’ bodies were strong, but Trinara had only hatched the previous day and her little bones were likely to be more fragile…
Nina had obviously shared the concern when he had mentioned the wings, probably the most vulnerable part of a dragon’s body. And she had promised she would come at sunrise the next morning. But now, he was waiting for Lyn’s opinion on the matter. The mother dragon would certainly make a first accurate check up of the state of the baby’s wings.
He raised his head; he heard her steps coming to the door. When she finally got out, he barely waited until she closed the door to ask her.
“So, how is she?”
“She will be fine, but as you said, she had a lot of emotions.”
In addition to Trinara’s health, the young man was worried about what the hatchling could have told her mother. He had voluntarily hidden the fact that he had gotten involved in a fight with the three bullies to not make her more emotionally shaking than she already was.
“Soooo… She has woken up?”
“Yes, and… She would like to have a talk with you.”
This took him aback. He had saved the baby’s life, but he had sensed this was still not enough to gain her trust. She was still afraid of him; he knew it. But maybe the events of this night had made her confident enough to stand his presence?
“Well… I guess we should go then…”
“No, she asked to talk to you alone.”
Surprise again. Maybe he had overestimated the fear he still inspired to the hatchling.
“You’re sure?” He asked, a bit uncomfortable.
“This is her request. I trust her. And I trust you.” She said with a soft lick on his cheek. “Go ahead my human, I’m sure you’ll do great.”
Nick smiled to the affectionate move, but didn’t feel confident about the whole deal. He had made the mistake a few times already, and he wasn’t sure forcing the baby dragon to accept his presence was a good idea now either. Yet, Lyn hoped he would do his best, and after all he had lived tonight, he didn’t want to disappoint her.
He nodded in silence, and carefully opened the door to sneak his head inside.
“Trinara? You wanted to speak to me?” He asked, in order to get permission to enter.
It was dark in the room; he could barely see her on the mattress. But he didn’t dare to switch on the light. Actually, everything about this meeting made him nervous.
“Y…Yes, come in.” She responded timidly.
She was still scared… he was willing to do as she told him, but he would use the greatest patience with her so she could get a little more relaxed around him. He closed the door behind him, walked slowly toward the mattress and sat on it, leaving a reasonable distance to not invade her safe space.
“What can I do for you?” He asked softly, before realizing she was staring at him with scared eyes. “I can get further if you prefer.”
“No, it’s… It’s alright.” She said nervously. “I wanted to ask you some questions…”
He had her curiosity; that was somehow reassuring. Maybe she was opened to a change of mind about him.
“I’ll gladly answer if I can.” He said with a smile, careful not to show his teeth so she wouldn’t take it as a threat.
She played with her paws nervously, avoiding his look.
“I… wanted to know… why did you save me?”
So she truly thought he didn’t care about her. This was a little heartbreak for him; he hoped his attitude hadn’t comforted her in this idea.
“Trinara, how could I let these monsters hurt you or even kill you? You are Lyn’s baby, I can’t let anything bad happen to you.”
“But you had no interest in doing that. I heard you, you know, you refused mommy’s comfort and you even hid the fact you had rescued me. If you didn’t do this for the reward, then why did you do this? Why did you come after me anyway?”
“You really think I’m here to imprison you, don’t you?”
He had dropped it without thinking, out of a rush of sadness. He realized his words confused the little dragon, which saddened him even more. She didn’t understand how he could even want to save her just for the sake of it.
Then he thought about what the strange hallucination had told him… about how easily someone could come to think he did all this by personal interest, just like the majority of men would do. Even he had come to doubt of his own motivation. But thanks to this strange being, he now knew the right words to speak.
“You are Lyn’s baby.” He repeated in a serious tone. “I love your mother, and I surely want her to be happy. But what I did tonight was nothing about her and I. What I did, I did it for you, Trinara, to keep you safe. If you actually heard me, I did say I was ready to get more discrete so you could feel safe here. And this is what I want: being able to watch over you, even at reasonable distance if needed, just to make sure you’ll be safe and happy. Nothing will make me happier than knowing Lyn and you feel comfortable here. Because in this family, I’ll never allow anyone to get hurt or feel caged as long as I have my word to say.”
The little dragon stared at him without speaking a word. Her expression was really difficult to read, but he thought he noticed a little twitch.
“Do you… really think that?” She asked, visibly confused.
“All you have to do is asking, and I’ll be nothing more than a shadow in this house. Until you feel ready to meet me for good, you’ll be happy with your mother, and you won’t have to worry about my presence. I promise.”
He smiled. Her face hadn’t switched of expression, but now he took her doubts in a good way. He knew that would make her think, and realize how far he was able to go for her. Sooner or later, she would abandon her fear of him; he was sure of that.
Satisfied of himself, he took her silence for agreement, and got up on his legs, ready to walk to the exit and start being a ghost in his own house.
“Nick, wait.” She called to stop him. “Sit again, please…”
A bit unconfidently, he obeyed her wish mechanically and sat on the soft mattress. He watched her hesitating, not daring to move a muscle. Then, she slowly got up, and walked nervously toward him.
“You’re sure?” he asked softly, understanding her intent. She was trying to confront her fear by coming closer to him. “You don’t have to, you know, I understand.”
“Earlier tonight, you carried me.” She spoke with obvious discomfort. “And… I wasn’t so scared… I… would like to try it again…”
He didn’t speak a word, but observed the little dragon approaching him, heart squeezing a bit. His speech had probably convinced the hatchling he had no bad intentions, and she was trying to fight her instinctive fears about him. He was deeply touched by this attempt, and actually found her cute. But Nick couldn’t help feeling bad for inspiring such discomfort while he just tried to be nice.
Trinara was just a few centimeters away now. She timidly looked up, lowered her head when she crossed his gaze, and looked at his laps. Carefully, shaking a bit, she raised a paw, and put it on his thigh. She hesitated briefly, then did the same with her other forepaw. With a little jump, she was now on his legs, and seemed to hesitate. An awkward smile appeared on her face. Moved by her cuteness, Nick carefully approached his hand to her head, but she still avoided it by reflex.
“I… I’m sorry.” She spoke with a little embarrassment.
“It’s okay, I’ll go at your rhythm. I’m already touched by your try.” He replied with a smile, removing his hand.
She lowered her head and went off of him, sitting next to him. Given her instinctive fear, the young human already considered it as a huge step.
“I… I’ll get used to you… You’re not so scary.”
Her words were encouraging, but her slightly shaking voice let him know that this was even more than a huge step for her.
“I understand, don’t worry” he reassured her. “Do you want me to go?”
She didn’t reply and looked away. She was obviously too embarrassed to approve, but he got the message. He didn’t want to impose himself anyway. He slowly got up, doing his best to not make too fast gestures that would afraid her, and started to walk toward the door.
“Nick?” she called, and he would look at her. “Could you tell mommy I want to see her?”
“Of course. Have a good night, Trinara. You’re safe here” he said with a smile, before getting out of the room.
In the hall, Lyn caught him as soon as he stepped out.
“So? How was it?” She asked a bit nervously.
“Good” he replied with a gentle caress on her jaw. “She even dared to come to me. She’s brave, like her mother.”
The forest dragoness produced a soft purr, in which he recognized a bit of relief. She drew her head closer to his, nuzzled him and gave him a loving lick on the cheek.
“I knew she would accept you. You’re the sweetest human I ever met, my love.”
“She would like to see you, by the way. I think you should be with her, after what happened, she needs you by her side. I’ll be in my room if you need me.”
“Okay Nick. Thank you, thank you for everything…” she whispered as she rose to hug him.
Hugging wasn’t natural to her; he knew it. This was a move she had learnt by observing humans. Her love for him had pushed her to imitate every human way to better demonstrate her affection. He hugged her back, and gently caressed her scales. She was so soft to touch, for a creature that would be a mighty predator in the nature.
When she finally broke the embrace, she pushed the door and entered the room, leaving him with a tenderized smile on his face.
Trinara had undeniably shaken his lovely routine, but seeing Lyn so dedicated to her hatchling made her even sweeter to his eyes. By this moment, he absolutely didn’t regret anything. He didn’t regret having Trinara in this house; he didn’t regret having rescued her. He felt so light on the inside, so relieved… Making those he loved happy made his own happiness.
He walked to the bathroom, still smiling as he brushed his teeth, and removed his clothes to get prepared for the night. He was probably not going to have Lyn by his side this night again, but he was fine with that. As long as they were happy, he was happy.
Nick then went to his bedroom, and stretched a bit. He was ready to go to bed when he felt a presence behind him. He turned around to face Lyn, who had sneaked behind him with an incredible discretion. He first thought that she needed something, but she had a curious grin on his face. He then feared that this was a new motherly reaction that would make her unpredictable. After all, he didn’t know what Trinara could have said to her.
Lyn could be here to reproach him to have forced the hatchling to get used to him or whatever…
“Is there a problem?” he asked carefully.
“No, everything is fine.” She replied calmly as her grin turned into a toothy smile.
She came closer and took him by the shoulder, making him lie down on his bed. He didn’t react nor resisted to this, unsure on how to take this situation. But as soon as he was on his back, she came to his ear to whisper.
“Trinara wants to be sure we’re not faking our attitude; she wants to be sure you also are here for us when we want you.”
“And… what kind of proof does she want?”
“She hasn’t mentioned it, but I got the idea for her…” She whispered on a strangely teasing tone. “Her memories are about the interaction of both sides… I think that if I do something scary to a human that you accept to submit to, she will be convinced.”
“And what do…” He began, but didn’t finish as he saw her licking her lips with a ravenous stare.
“So, submit, my human, let me do what I want with you… It’s time for me to have a scrumptious human for diner.”
He couldn’t help but smile to that. He was used to her weird pleasures and desires to eat him, but she usually played soft with him. Seeing this ravenous acting and predatory spark in her eyes somehow lit his desires too…
She got lower on him, letting her tongue trail on his belly, his hips, and his thigh, before getting it back into her maw, obviously enjoying the taste of his skin.
“Mmmmh…” She moaned softly. “You’re the most perfect meal for a dragon, little morsel.”
He didn’t know if she was acting like this out of a concern for a well played role, or if she was simply letting her instincts talk. But he knew that when it came to him, her desires were closely linked to her nature of predator. And her words, however threatening they could seem, had the sound of true love and passion to him. Loyal to her request, he didn’t move a muscle as she went down on his feet, and opened her maw.
With a persistent stare, like she was daring him to fight, she moved forward to welcome and lead his feet to the back of her maw. But he didn’t want to fight; he actually liked that attitude. He sustained her gaze as she took a first gulp, already engulfing him up to the ankles. He did recognize such softness; this was the proof that it was just a game to her. Because more than eating him, she loved going sweet on him, proudly showing him how much control she had on herself.
She moved a little bit faster on his legs, performing quick swallows to make him slide easily in her throat as she crawled closer. When she fitted his waist in her maw, she gently closed her jaws on his midriff, with a playful spark in her eyes. He couldn’t help but smile when he felt her tongue sliding around him, wrapping around his belly, while his lower body got teased with tight squeezes of her throat muscles, along with her ticklish purr.
She was a dragon, and like all dragons, she barely resisted to the taste of a human. Maybe the pleasure she took eating one was a main trigger to her love… and her desire to perform a love ritual, dragon style. But whatever the reason of them, he knew he could trust her feelings for him and he knew that this ritual, however frightening it was at first, was deeply meant to be affectionate. Of course he loved that too…
In a stronger gulp, she shoved his waist and lower belly inside her gullet, and he felt the tight entrance of her stomach on his feet. Only then he authorized himself a move… to bring his arms to his body, to make it easier for her. She thanked him with a wink, and slowly slid her tongue under his back, reaching his neck, to lift him up.
Gravity started to accompany her swallowing, and soon he was in to the shoulders. All along, he kept sustaining her loving gaze. He did it until the very second his head entered her maw, getting her eyes out of his vision range. And he closed his eyes when she closed her jaws, plunging him into the dark. He usually was scared in the dark, but curiously, while he was probably in the only dark place he should have been scared of, he felt in peace… More, he felt happy, happy to be close again to her, after all the recent events.
Her tongue wrapped him gently, coming to lick over his lips like love kiss before the great descent.
The whole maw rose as she tilted her head back.
And then she took her last, mighty and passionate gulp.
The flesh of her throat rapidly enveloped his head, dragging him downward. He traveled down her throat in a smooth and single slide which felt like a lovely massage, all the way until he easily fitted in her stomach. The walls around him extended to welcome him, before contracting on him like she was claiming him as hers… her meal.
Yet, he didn’t feel scared. On the contrary, he felt safe, and protected. No wonder why Lyn had done it as a way to appease Trinara when she was frightened. Over the sound of her heartbeats, he heard her moaning in pleasure. In addition to the satisfaction of full belly, he was tempted to give her the delight and the thrill of having a squirming prey, but she apparently wasn’t planning on simply lying there to enjoy him.
Everything shifted around him; by her move, he could tell she was getting out of the bed. Was she carrying him somewhere?
“I can’t believe it!” he heard from outside as a little pressure appeared on his back. “He’s actually in there?”
“Yes, he is.” Lyn replied while a bigger pressure rubbed over him. “He let me do it, without even a slight complaint or resistance.”
“But this is scary for a human, I know it.”
“Yes, yet he didn’t hesitated. You know, my sweet, I was once scared of him too. And when I grew up, I turned out to be the one scaring him. But we both learnt to not be afraid of each other. Once you discover that what you used to fear isn’t scary at all, you can also discover true happiness. Nick would do anything for us; he proved it twice tonight. And this, because he loves and care for us.”
Lyn always had a thing with words, speaking at the same time simple and wise sentences. For the young human, this was a remarkable sign of intelligence and purity. And he deeply loved this side of her too.
A silence followed, only disturbed by the sound of his beloved dragoness’ sweet heartbeats. Of course, he couldn’t see what was happening outside. All he could feel was the slight swing all around him; she was probably walking. After a few seconds of this, she finally stopped, and a large flat pressure made him shift a bit. She had probably lain down on her side.
“Can he hear us?” Trinara asked.
“He can, sweetie. And I also hope he listened” She replied with a giggle, pawing at his head through her flesh and scales. “Did you, Nick?”
He was amused by how natural this situation felt to him, and by her little teasing.
“I did, Lyn” he replied, rubbing her flesh tenderly. “And I couldn’t agree more.”
“You see, Trinara” she barely concealed her purr. “He’s really nice when you get to know him.”
“I know, mommy. I want to stop being afraid too…” Her two tiny paws pushed the belly of her mother, just strong enough for him to feel them. “Nick, I’m sorry… I’ve been trouble for you…”
He couldn’t help but being moved by her apologizing words. This was cute, and he didn’t want the poor hatchling to blame herself.
“It’s no big deal Trinara. I want you to be happy and to feel safe here.”
The stomach walls squeezed him a bit as Lyn probably felt touched by his efforts toward her baby.
“You took risks for me… You’re… the best dad I could wish for.”
This, on the other hand, took him aback. He did consider her as family, but only as Lyn’s daughter, not his…
“Trinara… I’m a human… I’m not your father…”
“I know, but I’d like you to be… You are the one mommy loves, your are the one who lives with her, and… I’d like to consider you as my dad…”
He was speechless… Accepting Lyn as his lover had been hard, and now, he was supposed to assume the role of her hatchling’s father? This made him feel awkward… He wasn’t sure he could do this… In last resort, he stroked the flesh surrounding him, and asked his beloved dragoness her opinion.
“I don’t know… what do you think, Lyn?”
“Oh, I’m just waiting for you to say yes, my lovely human”
Even from where he was, he could feel the smile of his companion and hear her amused tone. Like always, this seemed natural to her while it inspired him hundreds of moral reasons to hesitate. For this, she often was an inspiration to him, a lesson on how to think less about what would make him happy.
“Okay then, but do not take it too seriously. I’m mainly the one who watches over you, not much more.”
“You hear that, Trinara? Now you’re the one scaring him.” He heard Lyn giggling. And he chuckled too, realizing she was kind of right.
He felt Lyn move a bit, probably shifting on her mattress. At least, he thought it was this, but then he heard strange noises in her body, above. It was like… she was eating something? He heard a strong gulp and a few seconds later, something fell directly on his belly. But he couldn’t see in the dark…
“I asked mommy if I could sleep with you tonight, Nick” Trinara’s voice talked to him. So she was what Lyn was swallowing… but wait! Sleep?!
“Lyn, you don’t plan on keeping me here the whole night?!”
“It would be such a good proof of how lovely you are for me… Don’t you want Trinara to have a lovely father?” She spoke teasingly, rubbing over his head.
He was ready to do anything for her, of course, but she seemed to forget he wasn’t a dragon… Staying here was probably not safe for him…
“But… isn’t it… risky? You never kept me this long before…”
“Don’t you worry my sweet…” He said softly, nudging him a bit. “I would never take any risk with you… I have a perfect control, you’re safe.”
He didn’t know if she meant it, but she made him realize this was a way to show the right attitude to Trinara. After all, Lyn was in control, what she did with him scared him, but it was up to him to trust her… just like what he expected from Trinara. Forgetting fears about the one who had proved he was trustworthy. He knew how he had to react, what he should reply.
“Okay Lyn. You got me. But you let me out in the morning?”
“Don’t be scared, my human. I wouldn’t harm you…”She whispered lovingly. “Now we should all go to bed, having you two in there makes me sleepy…”
She had just finished her sentence when he heard her starting to breathe deeper, then snoring lightly. She had already fallen asleep.
“You’re funny when you’re scared.” He heard Trinara comment as she laid on him.
He smiled, even though he was unable to see her face, but managed to put his hand on her head to pet her gently.
“Don’t you dare making fun of me, little miss.” He giggled.
He felt her snuggling on his chest, and he carefully wrapped his arms around her, the same way he had carried her home earlier tonight.
“I don’t, daddy. I think you’re very brave… I hope to be like you when I grow up. With you, I feel safe… good night, daddy.”
He missed the opportunity to reply in his surprise, and heard her snoring as well. Dragons were so fast to fall asleep! But it made sense that powerful predators also needed an efficient sleep. He still smiled, and hugged her, closing his eyes to let Morpheus take him as well.
“Good night, Trinara.”