No sooner than I had passed out I awoke from a dreamless sleep. It was a disorientating lapse in time, but I could tell that I was feeling a distinct lack of oxygen in my brain. Breathing had become difficult. I sounded like an old man with a tracheotomy and a bad case of the black lung. My eyes adjusted to the morning light, at least one eye. Half my vision was completely blacked out by something large and fleshy pressing against the side of my face and something scaly rubbing against my throat. I shook involuntarily after finally waking up and nearly entered a panic after doing so.
My hands instinctively reached up to the arm wrapped around me, but even all my strength couldn't budge it at all. My reflexes became despondent and relented shortly after I strained my arms to their limit. Dejected at its failure, my mind was able to catch up and figure out what the problem was. Last night Rosette had suddenly attacked me, cornered me on the bed, locked me in, we had sex and during the night she turned in her sleep and put me in a headlock. Thanks brain, it's nice you're always there when I need you most.
While congratulating myself I came to another conclusion; my problem had yet to be solved. The lack of oxygen to my brain had obviously started to do funny things to my train of thought, and the oncoming near death experience only served to make me more sensitive to stimuli. The soft breast pressing against the side of my head felt nice, and time slowed down enough so I could enjoy the feeling even more. The crisis started getting worse when my brain, after expending itself already, let panic take hold again. I tried to get my hands under the red, thick and armor like scales on her forearm, even if I could pull it back just a little, one good gulp of air and I'd be back on track to remaining in the land of the living.
Once again my struggling and flailing ended in failure, and my hands searched around desperately for something to grab hold of. Eventually, my right hand got one good handful of soft flesh and gave it one panicky squeeze which was returned with a sweet moan. The body pressed up against mine finally stirred and let loose a feminine yawn.
“Oh Laven, so early in the morning.” Rosette cooed.
I responded with guttural noises. I could almost see her tilting her head side to side in puzzlement like a dog. Instead, she interpreted my dire plight to save my life for being frisky. This caused her only to hug me closer. My ability to breath was completely cut off. I felt her cheek rest on the top of my head and rub back and forth affectionately as she hummed to herself gaily. I was slamming my open palm onto the bed sheet now, trying to put it through her thick skull that I was tapping out. Almost as if she moved by instinct I felt the death grip loosen immediately, and I was relieved with one giant gasp of air. My back also shot upwards, sitting myself straight up choking and hacking.
I wasn't granted any respite; immediately her weight fell on my back and pushed down on my side where she wrapped herself around me like I was a living body pillow. Arms locked at my sides, one leg slid between mine and wrapped around. I couldn't move at all, but at least I could breathe. There was also the patter of something slapping against the bed covers, her tail wagging back and forth in excitement. Even in such close contact with so much of my body all at once there wasn't the same heat as there was last night. Even with both of us still naked like this, she nor I showed any reaction. Thankfully, there was no fuel to add to that fire.
With my life no longer in danger, I soon remembered that today was a very important day. The old man Donald offered us free passage to some vague safe place Rosette had explained to me. A safe haven in the south called the Free Ports. I would be stupid to think after yesterday's stunt that I had seen the last of the radical and extreme parts of some unknown religious institution no doubt after my head for some infraction against their core beliefs. It was too late for reconciliation, and you may call me crazy, but I thought I was safer with the violent, clingy and crazy lizard-girl than a bunch of religious fanatics.
“Rosette?” I called out to her rather irritated. It wasn't intentional, just a little leftover grudge from nearly being choked to death. “Rosette?” I called out for the second time, this time nicer but still without a response. “Rose,” The third one was almost a sigh.
“Yes?” Her response was instantaneous and chipper.
“Don't we have to be somewhere?”
“If you don't know what you're taking about, why would you ask?”
“I was being sarcastic.”
“Shark casting? What's that?” she said genuinely puzzled
That one made my head hurt. There were times when a genuine cunning shone in her eyes which was soon betrayed by crushing stupidity when she opened her mouth. Even now I wasn't quite sure just how deep a hole she could dig herself. I was getting the impression this girl's brain was completely unable to comprehend prose, and everything was taken at face value and literally. If I wasn't careful with my words I might put myself in a dangerous situation. Maybe if I was lucky only another headache would result.
Rosette's body tensed up, and she gave a yelp of dismay. She finally let go of her vice like embrace and rolled off the bed
“We have a job to do today!” She cried out as she began rummaging around the mess around the room.
“That's what I was-” A wad of cloth slammed into my face, enough for it to hurt somehow.
“Hurry Laven! Hurry!”
I pulled the cloth away and gave it as shake to reveal a pair of my boxers. At least most of a pair of boxers. It smelled burnt and there were large areas that had completely burned away. It then tore into two having been only been held together by the weakest of threads. I gave another sigh and sat up on the edge of the bed. Parts of the room and some of our belongings had been lit on fire last night; not only were we going to be late, but we'd have to take inventory.
I watched as Rosette turned some bags upside down and inside-out until she finally found the pairs of underwear she was looking for. Silk and dyed black thong. Neither frilly or suggestive; a rather utilitarian design. The back pulled up right below the base of her tail which swished back and forth as usual. I watched from behind as she slipped those claws and legs through each hole and rode them up to her waist and let them snap to her form. That slap caused me to twitch and come back to my senses. My eyes unfocused and refocused to see her slipping on a black string bikini top, cupping her breasts into- No! No no no no. Calm down.
I looked away, closed my eyes in a flustered panic and took deep breaths to calm my beating heart. I lightly slapped my cheeks in my hands to steel myself. Get a grip; we gotta get moving. Just ignore her and carry on. I distracted myself by finding spare parts of my own clothing and slipped them on. I was done much quicker than her; she was still tying on pieces of armour to her shoulders, arms, waist and hips. I studied her choice of dress, and my face must have been cockeyed because when she felt a gaze on her she turned around and noticed me and gave me a grin.
“Are you enjoying the view husband?” She teased shaking her hips which was accented by the clatter of her freshly donned armour clacking together.
I decided to ignore the last bit, “I was wondering why a warrior would wear so little armour. You look like you're ready to go to the beach, not fight.”
She actually had to pinch her chin in her thumb and pointer fingers and hum while she thought about what I said. She finally had some sort of epiphany at what I was getting at, “Why don't you see why yourself?” Spreading her feet and claws shoulder width apart, she held onto her hips, elbows out, and stuck her chest out. She remained motionless for some time before asking, “Aren't you gonna do it?”
“Do what?”
“Come on, hit me. Right in the stomach.” She patted her abdomen with her palm. “Come on.”
I hesitated and tried to talk, but only my lips moved mouthing off an inaudible, 'what the fuck?'
“Come on. I bet ya it won't hurt.”
She then turned to her right and reached for a nearby chair and tore one of the legs off. I was somehow not even surprised anymore this girl would do something so outrageous. I must be breaking. She tossed it at me, and I caught it one hand.
“I'll give ya a-. A- What was it?”
“A handicap?”
“Yeah! A handy cat!”
I ground my teeth and swallowed a scream. She's trying to prove a point, focus on that and humor her. Just do it and get it over with. Take your frustration out. I walked over and wound up the makeshift baseball bat over my shoulder and slammed it as hard as I could against her stomach. She didn't even flinch. She didn't budge or grimace either. The chair leg snapped on impact, and I watched as the splinters exploded from the point of impact. It felt like I had hit concrete, and my hands writhed in pain.
“Fucking hell.” I dropped the chair leg and massaged my right palm with my thumb trying to get the kink out of it after taking the shocking reverberation that had run up the piece of wood and into my arms.
Rosette laughed heartily, “I barely felt that at all. I'm already tough and wearing armor would just get in the way!”
She reached out suddenly with her right claw and grasped me by the back of the head. I felt her talons dig in a bit; it hurt like hell. She then pulled me down and shoved my face into her navel. Pressing the side of my head there and holding it. I tried to struggle, but there wasn't a hope of pulling away. Eventually I gave up, I tried to figure out what her game was, but when I relaxed I felt the softness of her skin, but there was a rock hardness beneath that layer of tanned skin and the thinnest almost nonexistent layer of fat. And so I sat there on my knees, unable to move, and Rosette seemed to have zoned out once again. Until her stomach gurgled almost loud enough to deafen me.
With a loud, “ah!” she ran off to find more dried meat to devour. That left me still kneeling on the floor a little dazed and confused.
This morning had been a whirlwind, and I still wasn't able to connect all the dots between last night and now. Just what was I doing? What was I supposed to be doing? Just what kind of position did I find myself in? I felt like I was prisoner in a cell, but the world outside was far too cruel and dangerous, and the warden seemed like the least of all evils I had laid my eyes upon. She was still an evil though, so a voice in the back of my head kept trying to remind me. 'She's vicious. She's violent. She's callous, rude and abrupt.' Somewhere on the other side of my brain spoke a different tale, 'She saved your life. She is selfless, brave and beautiful. Also in love. With you, if you didn't notice. Dumbass.'
I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes and tried to banish my thoughts. On instinct I turned around and saw something flying toward me out of the corner of my eye and caught something heavy and cold. Then a second flew at me then a third and a forth.
“Happy birthday!” Rosette called out excitedly. I was wide eyed, breathless and confused. “Well, maybe it isn't. Probably not. When else would you give someone a present?” She actually got lost in thought trying to answer her own rhetorical question. I was going to say something when she suddenly continued, “When you took a breather yesterday I snuck off quick and got them as a surprise.”
I looked down and saw they were a pair of leather boots and gloves inside iron vambraces and shinguards.
“That will stop all the bruising you've been gettin'.” She cried out, “oh!” and continued rummaging inside one of the larger bags. “Put your hands out.” I didn't even have a chance to say anything when she turned around and stomped her way toward me; I raised my hands out of fear. She pushed something to my chest, a brown shirt. Rather, it was a leather jerkin. She held one sleeve and held it against my arm and measured it; seeing it fit perfectly she smiled and gave a little, “yes!” and a fist pump. She handed it to me, “Put it on! Quick! Quick!”
A little overwhelmed I slipped it on and hastily tied up the front to secure it. It felt a little bulky and heavy, but I was thankful for that; immediately after I put it on Rosette punched me in the chest, hard. I didn't see it coming, and it put me off my feet, and I took a few rogue footsteps backwards and fell backwards onto the bed. I tried to breath, but the force of it winded me.
“You alright? You're okay right?” She extended a claw that I grabbed on reflex, and she pulled me back to my feet. She then slapped my chest with her palm and observed my face. Satisfied that I was only gasping for air and not wincing in pain; she gave another smile as if she was so very satisfied with herself. “See? See? You'll be fine.”
Was she showing concern? I think she was trying to show concern for me, but she certainly was enjoying herself at the same time while I was not.
“Come on! Get ready. We need to get going.” She was so cheerful she was humming as she gathered her things into a single bag.
I suppose we wouldn't be taking it all with us. We'd have to come back before we left again. I wasn't looking forward to it. When the owners of this inn saw the state of this room, the awkward glare from that old man would be hard to cope with. I slipped on and pulled the tall leather boots up over my jeans and pulled the gauntlets and vambraces over my arms. Steel covering my toes and shins, I moved my fingers and watched the jointed metal pieces flex and conform to my fingers. It was well crafted. Just how much money did this girl have to throw around without a care in the world?
“I wanted to do something special for you, but it's the wrong season.” She said uncharacteristically fidgeting on the spot. “I mean- I.” Now she was also flushed, a deep red across her cheeks. “I wanted to give you something more personal.”
“Whoa whoa, wait. Slow down-”
Rosette slid her talons across the armor on her hips and moved them up to the red scales that she wore over the cups of her black bikini top. “Something more intimate, so we could always be real close.”
That's when it dawned on me, “You use your own scales for your armor?”
Now she was a deep red, “Every winter- No! I mean yes! I mean we're married and I- I want to do that for you!” She pounded her own stomach with her fist. “It would be like I'm protecting you all the time. I'm real tough! You'd never get hurt more than I do. Even if I do cause a lot of trouble. Even if I'm not a good wife because I like to fight a lot. I feel much stronger. Stronger than ever because of you. And I want you to be stronger too! So that no matter what we fight, we can fight it together, and we'll never lose!”
I tried to stay cool and collected against the waves of euphoria she was gushing, “Rose,” I said, finally calling out to her.
She immediately stopped what she was doing and slowly turned her to face me. I was taken aback when I saw her eyes were watering a little..
“Whoa whoa whoa!” I hurriedly said, “I just wanted to say thank you! You don't have to-”
Her voice was meek but it stopped me immediately, “You called me Rose.”
“Erk,” The words in my throat backed up, piled onto each other and train wrecked. I hadn't even noticed. I didn't have the opportunity to cover my ass and play it off.
She leaped up and tackled me head on; her head butted me in the chest and knocked me flat onto the floor. I hit my back, which was conveniently cushioned this time by the jerkin, and Rose was rubbing her cheek affectionately against my chest and looked up at me with fluttering eyelashes.
“I was just-”
“Only my close friends call me Rose. You always call me Rosette first. But this time you said Rose!”
“Rose, we need to get going- ack!”
That was a bad choice; in the heat of my moment she clung onto me even tighter, and she was getting hotter and hotter; the flame on her tail getting larger and larger; it looked like it would spit embers again at any moment.
“Wait!” I cried out, “We need to get going! We're gonna be late!” I was desperate, if I didn't reel her in it would get bad very soon.
She sat up suddenly, still resting her hips on top of me, “You're right. Our first job together!”
Rose. Rosette... Fuck it. Rose grabbed onto my hand and pulled my still limp body to my feet. With her other claw she thrust my bag into my chest which I received but no sooner was yanked again when she grabbed hers and threw open the door nearly running through the hall, down the stairs and out of the inn.
This situation had become all too common. My arm hurt, my feet kept slipping and could barely get a grip and I had no doubt I was being dragged off to some dangerous place once again. But each time I caught sight of that smile on her face, I couldn't bring myself to complain.