“My name is Danyen,” he told them. “And I owe you an explanation for the destruction of your garden.”
“Clearly,” Danyen began. “I am not a human.”
Rikard took too deep a sip of his scalding tea and sputtered. He realized that he probably looking shocked. “That’s not a surprise,” he assured Danyen.
Trudy, clearly resisting her urge to hover over Rikard’s coughing fit, laughed. “We had figured that much out,” she agreed.
“I am what you would call a dragon, but the truth is more complex than that.” Danyen had a formal, stately air to him, but somehow managed to avoid being condescending, sitting across their yellow laminated table. “I am from a different world than this one.”
Trudy nodded sagely, sipping more sedately from her own tea than Rikard had managed.
“In my world, the energies we draw our life force from flow much differently than they do here. Here, we are visitors, and must use the local human assistance to tap into this source.” He looked at each of them. “I have recently… lost my human anchors. I thought that I would have more time to find replacements, but I misjudged how quickly I would weaken. I apologize for the damage my poor timing had on your domain.”
Trudy was looking out over the wreck of her garden. The sun was nearing the horizon, and the golden light did nothing to flatter the destruction that had been tidy raised beds and neat lawn just a few hours ago.
“It’s just a garden,” she said, but she had never been good at keeping her real feelings from her voice.
Danyen winced.
“What do you need to get back on your feet?” Rikard asked swiftly. “You look much better than you did, earlier.”
Danyen bowed a gracious head at them. “That is thanks to you. You were able to tap enough for me to restore a little of the energy I used in healing myself.”
Rikard exchanged a puzzled glance with Trudy. “We did?”
“How did we do that?” Trudy asked curiously.
“By having sex,” Danyen said.
Trudy turned a fascinating new shade of pink and covered her eyes with one hand. Rikard took another long, too-hot gulp of his tea.
“I apologize,” Danyen said again. “I realize you have cultural taboos on the subject. The energy of which I speak is something that can be tapped in several ways. Deep meditation, sexual release, pain; things that alter your perceptions of reality.”
Rikard was feeling like he was in need of something to alter his perception. Did dragons drink alcohol?
Trudy was trying very hard not to be a prude.
She had raised three strong, independent daughters, and she had tried to teach them – and model – the fact that sex was not an ugly or shameful thing.
But talking about sex frankly in her innocent country kitchen with Rikard looking like he would rather be anywhere else in the world and that gorgeous man across the table from them wearing no shirt over his god-like physique? It challenged every sensibility.
She uncovered her eyes and lifted her chin. “Are… are we your…” what had Danyen called them? “Your human anchors now?”
Danyen laugh
ed, and even his laugh was sultry.
“No. I would have to be personally involved in the act,” he said frankly. “And you two are… ah…”
“Old?” Rikard supplied.
“Boring?” Trudy guessed.
He blinked at them and they all looked at each other cautiously. “Some humans have a more immediate access to these planes of energy. They often manifest very specific alternate natural forms. These humans make the best anchors.”
He didn’t have to explain that Rikard and Trudy were just about as magical as lemonade and dirt.
“Of course,” Trudy agreed, pushing away the disappointment that came with that realization.