Dragon's Mate

Author’s Note: I haven’t spoken Japanese, or written it for that matter, in a long time so my grammar might be horrible. Also, I know only a few kanji symbols so I didn’t bother using them—I’d only use them incorrectly anyway. I was happy that AFF allows hiragana symbols in the first place so I didn’t have to use romanji—it looks weird when you’re used to seeing the actual characters. Sadly I couldn’t fix the abnormal spacing between the characters.

Also, if something doesn’t make sense then tell me about it! I don’t exactly do my best editing around 2am.

Warnings: Language….lots of it! Slight blood play (vampire-ish).

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“Mate?” I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. How the hell could I be Yuya’s mate? Did dragons even have mates?

That was a stupid question, of course they did. At least that was what all the legends led people to believe. But how was it that a human, living or otherwise, could become a dragon’s mate?

Did that mean that Yuya knew about this from the beginning? No, that couldn’t be it. Not even Yuya would kill his own mate if he knew who it was. At least I didn’t think he would.

And just why was he denying it? This bond or whatever it was we supposedly had—and just why the hell did I automatically believe all of this anyway? This Karura was trying to kill him and here I was believing everything he said without question—what the hell was wrong with me?

“Why else would you still be around? Did you even think about that?” I looked back at Yuya but he was still glaring at the Karura. I wasn’t even sure if he was blinking.

Could he have known about this the whole time, about why I was stuck here? If so then why didn’t he tell me? Why didn’t he even mention it? I would think that if he knew all about this that he would at least tell me something.

What reason did he have to keep silent about this?

“One would at least—”

“うるさい, このやろう!” Yuya interrupted, yelling in what I assumed to be Japanese. All the Karura did was laugh.

“ああ, ぼく は こわい ですね.” His voice told me he was mocking him, but beyond that I couldn’t understand a word of it. I really wished people would stop arguing in foreign languages.

One of the Monk’s came foreword, obviously worried because of all of the shouting, and tried to get them to calm down. Yuya and the Karura ignored him and kept arguing, their voices growing louder and the tension mounting. It was almost tangible, really, and I knew without a doubt that something bad was going to happen, I just didn’t know what.

Several other monks joined the first and while glancing around I noticed that there were worried expressions on the faces of everyone that had came to watch. Obviously something was going to go down but for some reason I was the only one who didn’t know what that something was.

I was distracted from my thoughts as Yuya passed through me, stepping closer to the Karura. Now standing in front of me I could see the tension in his shoulder blades and the stiffness of his muscles. Though he still couldn’t see me I got the impression that he was trying to protect me. But if the Karura ate dragons then why would I be in any danger?

That was a stupid question, I guess. The Karura could try and use me against him, though I wasn’t sure if that’d work out if Yuya was in fact denying whatever bond we had. Did being the possible mate of a dragon make me a dragon as well? I didn’t see how it could but maybe the bond would be enough to turn me into a bite-sized snack or something.

Being eaten by a Karura definitely wasn’t on my to-do list.

But then again, being eaten by a dragon hadn’t been on there either.

Leaning around Yuya to catch a glimpse of the Karura I caught sight of him just as he turned on the monk that was badgering him. Long, talon-like claws extended from his fingers as he wrapped his hand around the man’s throat. His protests were cut off and the others gave off panicked shouts as the Karura lifted him into the air and tightened his grip.

“They’re just so noisy.” He scowled before tossing the man on the ground and yelling at the others. Before he could finish telling them off, Yuya was upon him and had tackled him to the ground. Suddenly there was a flash of gold and red that nearly blinded me and I was forced to look away as a clap of thunder shook the walls.

By the time I looked back the both of them were gone and the sky had turned dark with rain clouds that hadn’t been there before. The monks were shouting still but I ignored them as I kept my eye on the sky. I didn’t know how or why, but I knew that Yuya was up there.

Lightning struck soon after and it was followed by the constant repetition of thunder. The straining in my chest was back and I wondered just how long I’d be able to last with the distance Yuya had put between us. It was definitely over thirty feet by now and I didn’t know why I wasn’t keeling over with pain like I had at the airport.

A large bold of lightning lit up the sky and I had to strain my eyes before staring disbelief. There’s no way I could have seen what I thought I saw, was there? Once again I was struck with the notion that you couldn’t truly believe in something until you saw it with your own eyes.

In the sky was an outline of a large, black dragon and beside him was the red-gold flash of the Karura. I could barely make them out, which was saying a lot considering that the body of the dragon and wingspan of the Karura were huge. They must be pretty high up, which meant that the distance-limit between Yuya and I had just grown exponentially without any prompting.

Perhaps it was because Yuya himself was now huge and the bond had changed to compensate for that. Or maybe it was something else that I couldn’t even begin to comprehend at the moment. One thing was for certain though; Yuya wasn’t kidding when he had said he couldn’t change in the hotel room—he would have destroyed it in its entirety.

I don’t know how long I stood there, staring in disbelief, but sooner or later rain started falling so heavily that even the monks started running for cover. I shivered even though the rain passed right through me and vaguely realized that I could somewhat feel the temperature of it. But that didn’t matter now, what matter was the sight I was seeing.

This meant that Yuya had been telling me the truth—that he was in fact a dragon. But this also told me that the Karura could have also been telling me the truth. How was it that Yuya could tell me something like this and yet lie about and deny whatever bond there was between us?

What would cause him to do that? Was being with me so vile that he refused to even consider it? Even if that was true then why had he gone through so much trouble to make sure I wasn’t in pain, to make sure that I was protected?

Another thought then occurred to me just then; was he fighting even now to protect me? He had attacked the Karura at first chance, forgoing his talisman in order to do so, and now there was no way for him to get it from where he was. Karuras fed on dragons and the only way to stop them was with a Buddhist talisman or by converting to Buddhist teachings.

Neither option was available to Yuya, which left only one; kill the Karura or be eaten. How could Yuya deny our bond and yet put himself in such danger for me? He could have escaped and gotten the talisman if he had only left me alone with the Karura, but he hadn’t. He had refused to leave my side.

There was a shout beside me and I turned to look at one of the monks who was trying to shoo me inside. He wasn’t having much luck, since I was a ghost, but he was pretty damn persistent. Pointing at the sky he shouted “Long!” and then pointed at me before making shooing motions towards one of the buildings.

I didn’t want to leave but whatever the guy was talking about seemed important so I allowed him to lead me inside. I could always just leave again if I wanted to. It’s not like any of them could ever stop me.

Once inside the doors closed and I watched as the others scurried about, running back and forth between the rooms and bringing several things to the front. The same monk from before ushered me foreword and I watched as a prayer was chanted over a coin before it was slipped into one of those fabric pouches that were always seen being sold at the shrines on TV. The pouch was blue and red with gold characters on it and soon after the coin was slipped in another prayer was chanted over a silver Buddha pendant.

The position of the Buddha was different from normal, with one hand on his chest and the other in his lap. I assumed this had some significance but for the life of me I didn’t know what it was. I supposed it didn’t really matter, as long as it worked, but the ceremony seemed important none-the-less.

When they were done they tried to have me take it but I just stared at them blankly with disbelief. It was weird enough that they could see me, but it was even weirder still that they thought I could actually pick that thing up. I was a ghost, for fuck’s sake!

They were insistent though, so much so that it was starting to get on my nerves and I finally just tried to pick the thing up just so I could show them that I couldn’t. Opening my mouth to speak, I shut it and once again stared in disbelief as the talisman didn’t pass through my hand, but remained in it. Shocked, I continued staring until the monks once again demanded my attention.

The one in front of me had a small piece of parchment and beside it was a calligraphy paintbrush next to a well of ink. He made elaborate writing motions in the air as if I were and idiot and repeated the word ‘long’ though I had no idea what it meant. Thunder shook the building and I watched as the ripples spread throughout the ink.

Just what was I supposed to write?

The monk in front of me, so old that I had to wonder how he could still hold a brush, pointed towards the ceiling and I realized he must be referring to Yuya. Was ‘long’ the Chinese word for dragon? I just hoped that it wasn’t the word for karura instead.

Was I supposed to write something about Yuya? To Yuya? He pointed to the talisman I thought I finally understood. The talisman was mean to protect Yuya from the Karura and they wanted me to write something about Yuya. Was I supposed to write a prayer to protect him?

I didn’t know if that was what they really wanted but I hoped to hell that it was. Otherwise I didn’t know what would happen. Buddha, or whatever, don’t let me mess this up.

I picked the brush up with caution, not knowing if I’d be able to touch it or not, but nothing went wrong and I was able to quickly write out a message before it started slipping through my grip. I set it down before I dropped it and the old monk picked it up and blew on the ink to dry it before he folded it up into a little rectangle.

Writing something on the front of it he indicated towards the talisman and I offered it back to him so he could slip the paper inside. He then handed it back to me and as soon as it touched my hand there was a huge crash from outside and a flash of light lit up the entire building before it faded. There was no clap of thunder that followed.

Turning, I ran out of the building just as they opened the door to see what had happened and stopped dead in my tracks at the beginning of the rock garden. In front of me was a huge, taloned foot and above it was gigantic mass of black scales. The pain in my chest was gone and I realized that the gigantic thing in front of me was a body of a dragon, of Yuya.

The foot moved and I jumped back, following the length of his body until I came upon his head. His mane, or whatever it was called, was large and flared out in ridged spikes. His horns, oddly enough, were thicker at the tip than at the base and he still wasn’t as long as I had expected. Not that one could really expect something like this, but still.

He let loose a roar that made the earth tremble and would have had me shaking in my boots, if I had any. A screech followed and I noticed the Karura standing on the partially crushed roof that Yuya was leaning on. He was huge, his wing-span covering the length of an entire house, and he had the head of an eagle. Flaming symbols circled his head in a halo like pattern and I think if I hadn’t already been dead I would have fainted dead away at the sight of them.

Holy. Fucking. Shit.

My brain, being dead and all, could barely even process any of this so I tried to put the big picture out of my mind and focused in on something small; Yuya was wounded. The Karura was as well, but that didn’t really matter to me. There were gashes along his side and although they didn’t seem to be slowing him down, they still must have hurt.

The monk beside me pointed towards Yuya and then at the talisman, making shooing motions for me to go and give it to him. I stared in disbelief and wondered if I wasn’t the only one who was sane around here while everyone else was crazy. He then yelled at me in Chinese and I, finally snapping, yelled back.

“What the fuck do you expect me to do?! He’s a fucking dragon!” My voice caught Yuya’s attention and he turned to look at me with his fierce, green eyes before the Karura attacked him. Turning back he snapped at him and nearly caught a wing before he escaped. A clap of thunder sounded as the Karura took flight and circled Yuya.

The monk yelled at me again and made more gestures towards the dragon. I wasn’t sure if they were more upset about me not getting the talisman to Yuya or the destruction of the temple. I didn’t care though and as I watched as the blood ooze from his wounds I knew that I had to stop this before one of them was killed.

I was afraid that that someone might just be Yuya.

The one comforting thought that I had was that I was already dead and couldn’t die a second time, though with being about to pick up the brush and the talisman I was no longer sure if I wouldn’t be able to get hurt. I didn’t want Yuya to die though so I tried to ignore these thoughts as I got closer to him. Hesitating for a moment I placed my hand on his belly to let him know I was there and his scaly skin shuddered beneath my hand. It was just like the dragon tattoo on his back.

Thunder caught my attention and my eyes widened as I saw the Karura swooping down towards me. Maybe he knew what I was doing or maybe he just wanted to use me against Yuya but he sure as hell looked ready to kill me and I ducked down to avoid him instinctively. A strong gust of wind passed over my head and I looked up as the Karura suddenly screeched in pain.

Yuya had moved, as much as he could without hurting me, and his talons had left huge claw marks on the Karura’s large chest. Moving as fast as I could I scurried under Yuya as he rose up over me and wondered just what in the hell I had done to deserve all this. Why the hell am I the one that has to deal with these not-so-mythical creatures?!

My mind was racing and I really had no idea just how I was supposed to hand a talisman over to a fucking dragon, especially when said dragon was in the middle of fight to the death! Not to mention he couldn’t even hear me!

I paused at that, realizing something that I hadn’t noticed before. How the hell could Yuya be hovering over me now if he couldn’t even see me? Something had to have changed with him now that he was in his dragon form and if he knew where I was then he might be able to hear me as well!

Yuya’s paw—claw—whatever the fuck it’s called was about 5-10 above my head and there was no way I could reach from where I was. If I left Yuya’s protection then the Karura could get me, which left me with very little options to choose from. What the hell am I supposed to do?

Claps of thunder let me know that the Karura was still moving, and while I was still here, under foot, Yuya wouldn’t risk flying in the off chance that the take off would hurt me. We were stuck, for now at least, and we were quickly running out of time and options. Protecting me left Yuya handicapped, vulnerable to the Karura’s attack, and I knew I had to do something before he was mortally wounded, but what that something was I had no idea.

My brain wasn’t working anymore.

“Yuya! Give me your goddamn paw!” I had no idea what the hell I was doing anymore, but goddamn it I was sure as hell going to do it! I swear Yuya, if you ignore me or pretend you can’t hear me I’ll beat the shit out of you whenever you turn human again!

He hesitated, I could see it in the way his scales moved and his body tensed, before he turned his large head to look at me and brought his paw down to my level. I realized on some level just how much faith he had to have put in me in order to leave himself defenseless against the Karura’s attacks just to obey my command. It made my heart ache in a way I couldn’t understand and before I could let myself think on it further I had to end it.

Taking the talisman I had held in nearly a death grip, I placed it against the center of his paw and held it there with my own. The Karura screeched again and swooped down towards Yuya, talons bared, and then veered off course at the last minute, squawking in indignation. He tried it again only to be met with the same result and let out a loud screech of defiance that made me cringe before flying off, the sound of thunder lessening as the distance increased.

For a moment it was silent except for the pounding of the rain and Yuya’s labored breathing before the air started to tingle around me, like the static from the TV had done to my hand, and Yuya’s scales started to twitch and shudder. Looking up at him his image started to haze and twist before my eyes before he quickly started shrinking, turning back into his human form.

His hand, now seemingly small against my own, was clasped in mine and still held the talisman in its palm. He wobbled on his feet for a moment before his wounds got the better of him and he collapsed right there in the rock garden. Thankfully he didn’t hit his head and I walked along beside him as the monks carried him to a spare room.

He growled at anyone who tried to touch him (anyone that wasn’t me), the same growl he had given the Karura as a dragon, and successfully managed to get them to back off with a few angry shouts. Apparently not even monks who had just helped save him were willing to defy an angry dragon. Not that I could blame them, really.

Once we were left alone with the proper medical supplies Yuya closed his eyes and rested against the futon he had been placed on. His breathing was now calm, but pained, and he didn’t say a word about the pain he must be feeling. If it were me, I didn’t think I would be able to keep quiet.

After a moment he peeked up at me, his eyes still smoldering and looking around for danger. He lifted up his hand, wincing as it moved, but not stopping until he could place it against my cheek. We stared at each other for a long moment before he licked his lips and let his hand fall.

“Please, Jaidyn.” He paused for a moment, swallowing. “Forgive me.” Dipping his fingers into the blood that flowed from his chest he brought them to my lips and watched me as I licked it off.

I didn’t know why I did it, but it seemed like the right thing to do and I didn’t think I would ever understand the reasoning behind it. His blood tasted metallic on my tongue, just like any other, and he gave me a shaky smile before once again closing his eyes. I had a lot of questions to ask him, like I always did, but they could wait for now.

Right now there were wounds I had to attend to.

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Author’s Note: Here’s the translation to the Japanese, in order!

1) “Shut up, you bastard!”
2) “Ah, I’m so scared!” (Not quite a literal translation.)

The Battle: I’m not very good with describing battle scenes, but I tried. Tatsu, Japanese dragons, are said to create lightning in the sky when they battle. They are also patrons of the wind and rain, hence the storm. Karuras are said to create thunder with their wings and have huge wing-spans. (Some say they can block out the sun, but I’m not getting into the whole history of it. It probably goes all the way back to Ahriman and Ahura-Mazda.)

Long: Long is the Chinese word for dragon.

The Talisman: Why is it that no one says what the talisman is supposed to be or look like?! Because of this I combined two different ones and hoped to hell that it had some semblance of accuracy to it. (The Kalichakra “Peace” Prayer Pouch and the Silver Buddhist Pendant in the Aphaya Pose.)

http://www.fengshuidesigns.com/Talismans%20&%20Sacred%20Jewelry.htm
http://www.siamese-dream.com/page/siam1/CTGY/Amulets-Talisman

The Dragon: Male dragons tend to have spiky ‘manes’ and a club like tail. Their horns are thicker at the tip than at the base and their snouts are more curved.

http://everything2.com/e2node/How%2520to%2520distinguish%2520a%2520Dragon

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tf: Your question will be answered in the next chapter. Thanks for the review!

renji: Don’t get in trouble at work over this! If you’d like I can send you a little note via e-mail telling you when I update, though I try to do so (update) every week. And thank you for the review!

Fold39Crane: Yeah, for some reason I wanted to have him say “Triple fuck on a stick” after “double fuck” but it just didn’t work out. That might have been the insomnia talking anyway. XD

madlodger: I thought about putting them together, but then I was like ‘screw it!’ People should be upset every once in a while and realize that not everything has an expected and happy ending, even though the sequel does. I’m glad you liked it though.

nanase08: Your question will be answered in the next chapter—only two more to go!