"Vegetables, fungus, tubers, and meat," Rymar said. "That's all they eat. No types of food, no candy, nothing."
So Reekay began filling another box. "Well, women love my pastries. These are filled with fruit and cheese, so you see if she likes them." Then he reached for something else. "I've got a sampler bag over here too. Has some sour candy in it, some hard candy, and a few other things."
"I'll take it all," Rymar assured him as he dug out his money.
But Reekay just set the boxes before us and reached for a small paper bag so we could carry it all. "No, sir. You do not understand. No charge today. See, not all of us think she's a bad thing. And there's been rumors Drozel is preparing for the day they attack! Maybe I'm taking that wrong..."
"You're not," I assured him. "Ayla found out when they'll be here. She might be off by a day, but she thinks she knows, because she knows their hunting pattern. She just never knew what they were hunting. So now she wants to help us stop them for good."
"So you give her that candy," Reekay told us. "Then you find out which ones she likes, and we'll make more. If we can guess even close to when they're coming, it will save so many lives! After losing my boy, my cousin, and her entire family..."
"I can't guarantee she'll be right, though," Rymar admitted.
Reekay just waved that off. "She's trying. My wife said she heard your girl was hurt bad down there. Said the Moles are abusive to their women. Well, the way I see it, if she's willing to help us to get revenge, then I'm willing to give her some candy to make sure she keeps doing it."
"Thank you," I said, lifting the bag.
"And I'm not the only one who thinks that," Reekay added. "A few of us have been talking, and she's not so orin anymore."
"Like who?" Rymar asked.
Reekay listed off some other shop owners. Rymar nodded, taking note of them. "Perfect, because today we're buying our guest a few things of her own, and now I know whose stalls to visit first," he said. "Thank you, Reekay, and we'll make sure Ayla knows you gave these to her."
"Thank you, sir!" Reekay said, grinning at Rymar like he was a celebrity. "And tell the Wyvern to keep that lady safe."
"Oh, he will," I promised. "He says what's in her mind is a treasure. Might be the only hope we have to finally end this."
"And fuck up the Moles while we're at it," Rymar said as he turned for the next shop. "And maybe even to make her a Dragon."
Sixty-SixAyla
That night, I headed to bed early. Mostly, I just wanted to curl around the water bottle Kanik had bought for me. It and the pills made my cramps hurt less. The panties were more comfortable than even the pads Zasen had given me. But while all of that was great, being alone meant I didn't have to pretend to not be nervous.
The guys had insisted menstruation, as they called it, was fine. Saveah had even brought Tamin over to practice the bow with me. When I'd taken a break, she'd whispered that Zasen had borrowed the "pads" from her, which meant she was willing to answer any questions I had.
And I had a few. It made me feel like a child again, confused about what was going on with my body, but I was now mature enough to ask another woman. Maybe not the men - or at least not without blushing and stammering. But a woman was easy to talk to about women's things.
Which had led to a discussion about all of it. The things the men had bought for me, the way I was expected to act, and even how it was okay for them to know. Saveah laughed as she told me about her husband buying feminine products for her, and how he always came home all puffed up like he'd just saved her or something.
"They want to help," she assured me. "Men don't menstruate, so they feel helpless and they hate it. It's okay to tell them, Ayla. Trust me, they probably know more about what's going on inside you than you do."
Which was a very good point. Zasen knew some medicine. Kanik taught science. Rymar? Well, I could only assume the other two had told him something in their lives, because he didn't act confused or disgusted at all. Instead, they'd spoiled me, doing their best to make sure I was comfortable.
And it was a lot.
But when I was almost asleep, I heard the front door open, then close. Since Rymar and Kanik had already headed upstairs, that means Zasen had left. Likely, he'd gone out to hunt, filling the orders he always seemed to have for meat.
The next day, I discovered where the Wyvern had actually gone.
A gorgeous pastel-green dress laid on the dresser at the end of the bed. It was made of some soft, airy fabric. With it was a set of undergarments. They were beautiful, made in a fabric like nothing I'd seen before. I checked the door again - it was still locked, which made me remember his claw in the bathroom latch. I wasn't sure what I thought about that, but I also couldn't do anything about it. So giving in, I changed.
When I unfolded the dress, I found it wasn't only that pale green shade. It had a pattern of large yellow and blue flowers on it, the colors as vivid as the Dragons themselves. It was probably the most beautiful thing I'd ever worn, and certainly the most exotic.
However, the fit of it wasn't what I expected. For a moment, I debated putting the other dress back on. But no, the Dragons showed a lot more flesh, and no one seemed to think much of it, so maybe the tops of my breasts weren't a big deal here? In the compound, this dress would've been scandalous. It hugged my body and drew the eye to my chest, but was also very pretty.
Flicking the locking mechanism, I stepped into the rest of the house. It was silent. When I reached the living room, I realized why. Pale grey toes stuck out from the end of the couch nearest me, dark fingers from the other end, and hanging off the side, a blue tail twitched gently in sleep.
I paused. I didn't want to wake Zasen, but I couldn't pull my eyes away. I'd never seen a man asleep before, regardless of his type. That his tail twitched was amusing. The talons on his digits were threatening. The way he burrowed his head into the pillow, then pulled the blankets nearly over it, was adorable, almost childlike.
Then his eyes just opened. The brilliant orange color made them hard to miss. Maybe that was why I could never look away from him? Not that it mattered. We simply stared at each other in silence for a long moment, then he smiled.
"Good morning, Wyvern," I finally said, feeling like I should be overly formal.
He rolled onto his back and stretched, yawning while he did so. The tip of his tail vibrated with the muscles, his arms nearly touched the wall, and in his mouth, I saw his fangs slide forward, resting on either side of that strangely-colored tongue. He relaxed with a pleased moan, then looked at me again.
"Ayla, why are you staring at me?"
I hadn't realized I was, and felt my cheeks growing warmer. "I'm sorry."
"I didn't ask for your sorry. I asked what I did this time that's so interesting."
"I've never seen a man sleeping."
That made him smile, and he sat up, accepting it as an answer. What he didn't do was throw off the blankets. I realized he might not be wearing anything beneath it, since both his chest and feet were bare, so I turned away. I'd been headed to the kitchen for a drink anyway.
"Ayla?" he asked.
I paused. "Yes, Zasen?"
