Dragon's little flower

Chapter six

Seraphina is in a blissful mood since departing from land. The trees and the houses have become smaller and smaller until they represent just some colorful dots on the ground that can be compared to a map. The wind runs through her hair, especially near the ears, in a soothing, comforting touch. It is a gesture that relaxes her even more on the back of the dragon.

Flying some laps through the sky, they both enjoy the high-up journey in silence. Later, Belletem decides to land near a lake, because he knows she is not used to flying and, up there, the weather drops a few degrees, making the atmosphere chillier. He quickly changes forms once Seraphina is safely standing on the ground. The first thing he wants to do is to confirm she had a pleasant experience like his, so he asks her to be sure.

„The landscape was stunning, definitely a view I wouldn't usually see, which made me happier." she shifts her weight from one foot to another. „But..."

„Was there a problem?" he queries in a concerned manner, coming closer to where she stands. „Did I do something wrong?"

She quickly assures him that that was not the issue. „I guess I just have some motion sickness because I felt so lightheaded, you know?"

Inspecting her visually, Belletem offers her to put down a blanket, so they can rest a little, but to his surprise, she refuses kindly.

„I would much prefer to swim now than sit down watching the lake. The water surface invites us to enjoy it." his mate says, before leaving Belletem behind and pouring all her focus on the task at hand: going into the open water.

He hurries after her. „I...I" he pronounces, emphasizing the syllable as he reaches for her arm. „Seraphina, do you know how to swim? This is not a bath you can take, neither an outside pool, the water is deep, you can't touch the bottom of the lake." He puts himself between the water and her. „Besides, the lakebed is covered with sediments, leaves and sharp rocks that could harm you."

She just sidesteps him and turns her head in his direction. „Perhaps, if I didn't know how to swim, I wouldn't be so eager to jump in."-is the last thing she says before she hurries and approaches the water. In a fluid motion, arms outstretched, she propels herself off the edge and soars momentarily through the air. With a fantastic splash, droplets go flying everywhere, and she submerges, being embraced by the cool clean water.

A moment goes by and another second passes. The girl lets herself sink down deeper and deeper, allowing herself to feel the surroundings to the maximum extent. Unfortunately, this is not something taken lightly by the young boy and, without a second thought, he pumps his legs and sprints toward the water's edge. With a gracious jump, he swims where he last saw her.

Being partially dragon, his eyesight is clearer than a human, so he finds her fast. With a sense of relief, he embraces her from the back and carries her to the surface.

„Belletem, what are you doing?" she inhaled a big breath of fresh air.

„What am I doing!?" he looks aggressively disturbed. „Why didn't you surface, hm?"

She looks carefully at him and sees how stressed he looks. The unease must vanish like it had never been there and so, Seraphina moves her right hand nearer his face until their skin touches.

„My intention wasn't to scare you dear, I wanted to surface. Of course, I would have, but you didn't give me the chance." she tangles her legs around his waist, making him inhale sharply. „Just have a little bit of faith in me, will you?" she strokes his face lightly, looking in his eyes. The moment was intense, breathtaking for him, burning for her. Butterflies erupt in their stomachs, their souls becoming united in an imperceptible way, in the unseen world. Swimmingly, she puts both her hands on his shoulder, making their proximity a place of comfort. She smiles. He looks in her eyes, reading her emotions like an open book.

All of a sudden, Seraphina pushes her hands hard on his shoulders, making him sink in the water, until he is fully submerged. But, to her surprise, she feels him pulling her down too. They stay a little bit under the surface and then they swim upwards. When they see each other's face again, they burst into giggles at their action. Feeling joyful and excited about being in each other's company, they continue to play all afternoon. Slashing the water in the other's face, jumping from one's shoulders into the lake, tumbling down in different kind of ways and swimming, trying to catch them reciprocally. These are all the things they do in this part of nature. They feel free of day-to-day chores and worries, becoming again, for a short period of time, children.

Once their skin starts to wrinkle, they decide to go out and dry themselves. She exits first and is followed closely by him. Now that their clothes become wet, the thin material clings to her skin, highlighting her silhouette.

„We are probably a little bit mad; don't you think?" she moves her arms in unison with her legs' movement.

„Hm" he sounds like he ponders her question. „Why do you consider us ,mad'?"

„Well, normal people wouldn't have entered the water fully clothed."

„Probably," Belletem nods his head in understanding, „but they would have also come prepared, with towels to dry and a pair of exchange clothes."

As a result of their enthusiasm but neglectful entertainment, they had to run laps around the lake, so the wind from their jogging could dry and warm them up. Laughing to some more trivial jokes, they surround the area a few times.

In her mind, Seraphina considers this trip date, so to say, a success. Her partner was a gentleman all the time, and she felt somehow empowered by his presence. Then, she looks with attention at the landscape, because she wishes to embroider the memory on canvas someday.

Belletem is also well pleased. He finds his mate courageous, both because she initiated the idea of presenting her garden with everything it has and because she flew through the sky like it wasn't her first time. Indeed, he discovered a flower that is so much more precious than any crafted jewel.

After they dried them up the best they could, the prince transforms magically back into his dragon form, stretching the wing closer to her, so she can effortlessly reach him and climb his back.

The journey of returning Seraphina to her home is quick and harmless. Their time together is up. A beautiful adventure they hope, one day, will plan it yet again. Landing not far from her majestic garden, they went on the trodden path holding hands. Once they reach the cottages' entrance, she makes a gesture that delights him to no limit. She turns her whole body facing him, she lets go of his hand, cupping his face and turning it to the side. Next, tiptoeing, she kisses his cheek loudly.

„Thank you for this wonderful venture. I felt blissful, truly." speaks her. In the meantime, Belletem tries to come back to reality. He is in a reverie mood from her action of kissing him. Unbelievable! „I couldn't ask for a better mate." he thinks.

She laughs when he asks her the date for their next meeting, which makes him confused.

„We didn't even separate, and you are asking me for the next date?" her laughter turned into soft giggles.

He declares he already misses her, words that make her blush profoundly. If it'd be up to him, they wouldn't distance themselves from one another at any moment. But there are still a few steps to be taken to achieve his goal. For now, he has his royal duties, she has her grandparents, her animals and garden to take care of.

„You know, in two weeks our village celebrates the coming of spring with a festival of launching..."

„Two weeks?" he can't believe what he hears. Two weeks without seeing her is pure torture.

„Yes" she continued. „I would like to go with you."

He thought some time about her proposal. He can't scare her away by being a clingy partner. If he could wait century after century to find her, then he could wait fourteen days until their next date. Balancing in his mind the best outcome. In the end, he agrees.