Winter's chill had made a return, making the coziness of my lair ever more appreciated. With the fireplace I taught myself to build, quilts I taught myself to sew, and baked goods I taught myself to make, it would've put any inn to shame. And my dear Flora would certainly attest to that statement, as she was indulging herself in all three amenities as she pored over a book on speaking dragontongue. She insisted on learning the language now that we were living together, which I found so touching.

I, in my human form, was curled up beside her, savoring her aroma of peppermint as I tested her knowledge. "Alright, try this: <I sailed past the edge of the world three times over.>"

Flora thought for a bit before answering, "<And still I know of no sight more brilliant than you.>"

I smiled and kissed her on the cheek. "Exactly correct. And your accent was flawless."

Flora giggled. "Well, I owe it all to my teacher. Speaking of which," she continued as she shifted positions to get into my lap, "Is there anything I can do for extra credit, Mrs. Moonslice?"

I purred as I wrapped my arms around her. "Always, princess. No such thing as being too much of a teacher's pet, after all."

Flora and I began kissing as I pulled the quilt off of us and we rolled onto the bearskin carpet. The fire crackled and bathed the both of us in warm, flickering light as Flora peppered my neck with bite marks. In between soft gasps, I said to her, "You know what the worst part of this is? When I turn back into a dragon, these lovely marks of yours will be gone."

"Mmm, I love the image of you flying around, brazenly showing off how you're all mine--"

THOOM THOOM THOOM!

A thunderous knocking rang through the lair. Someone was at the front door. I groaned as I took a break from the entertainment to fire up the pneumatic communication system Flora put together last weekend. Static briefly rang out from the speaker, followed by the voice of a woman yelling, "Flora, you come out here this instant!" Now, it was Flora's turn to groan--her mother was back again.

Flora pressed the button on the microphone and said, "I'm sorry, but we don't allow any Queen Prudences on the premises. Please come back when you are someone else."

"Flora, you open this door and come home right now!"

"Well, she would if she wouldn't freeze to death," I responded. "And, you know, if she actually wanted to."

"Nobody was talking to you, you scaled harlot!"

Flora scowled. "Don't talk to Brunhilde like that!"

Prudence sighed aggressively. "Look, Flora, I know that you had this place recognized by the archival society as a repository of knowledge so I couldn't just order it destroyed. And your father and I agree that this little rebellious phase has officially gone too far. Now, we've found a prince from a neighboring kingdom who's willing to marry you, so if you come down here peacefully, we'll leave this hovel alone."

Flora looked like she was about to explode. "Okay, first of all, Brunhilde is a thousand times better than any milquetoast royal bastard you could find. Second of all, you will respect the lair's protected status regardless of my decision or I'll sic the grand archivist on your ass. And third of all, I lost my virginity to our old gardener Primrose, so this is not and never has been a phase. Now fuck off!"

Flora hung up and let out a huff as she slumped back against the quilt pile. I scooted in next to her and said, "You okay, honey?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, I just...why can't I be enough for that woman as I am?"

I placed my hand over hers. "Well, she's stupid. And you'll always be enough for me."

Flora smiled and leaned against my shoulder. "Thanks, baby."

"So, the gardener, huh?"

Flora smirked and began stroking my thigh. "Do you want details or do you want to help me bury my virginity ever further?"

"Second option, please."