-Duo:-

It all began with a set of eyes- mesmerising, spell-binding, gazing out at me from the shadows of a dingy, wind-swept street. Once you saw those eyes, it was impossible to break away, unaffected.

It wasn’t the first time I’d seen that gaze, either. It would happen at random times in random places- the back of my neck prickling with the sensation of being watched. I’d spin around- it was always the same. Glorious, beckoning ebony eyes would meet mine hungrily, and then, as though they had never been there, disappear.

It was unnerving. It was frightening.

It was addictive.

I could never tell when it would happen, which added greatly to its allure. The eyes found me everywhere-on a metro ride across the city[1], in cafes on the grands boulevards[2], next to the bookstalls along the banks of the Seine, peering from behind darkened doorways and bookshelves in the Bibliotheque Nationale[3], prowling through darkened streets, lit garishly by neon signs. And yet every time I tried to catch a glimpse of the person who had to be attached to the eyes, they were gone again.

It was weeks before I convinced myself that I had indeed gone crazy, and then the impossible happened and proved me wrong.

He spoke to me.

-The Dragon:-

How long have I roamed these streets in this mortal guise? It would have seemed like eternity to the mortals around me- they have no concept of quite how long that is, though. They fascinated me- these puny creatures, with little body hair and no natural means of protecting themselves. They had managed to survive and thrive where so many other species had failed in the past, and that alone would have been enough to capture my intrigue, but they have done more.

Somehow, these humans grew to dominate the entire world, my world, and that merited closer inspection.

It is my world- I am the Dragon of Life. I have been here since the very beginning, I watched the first sunrise and sunset, I drank the water from the first rainfall. I watched as the dinosaurs grew and began to dominate- I grieved when they were exterminated by a fireball falling from the sky. I have seen it all, and the more I saw of humankind, the more I yearned to understand. What made them so special?

And so I made the most seemingly foolhardy choice of my life- I chose to go among them. And so I have wandered for centuries now, a slight youth of apparently oriental heritage, ebony-dark eyes and golden skin, coal black hair that reaches to my shoulderblades. I have slipped through all crowds and watched closely as people did all those things that made them people. I watched… and I didn’t understand.

The understanding came, as inevitably it had to. In the guise of a young man, barely more than a boy.

I first saw him in the City of Lights, and he eclipsed every light of the great, old city. Indeed- the Great Dragon’s attention was captured as I saw him pass, his gleaming, cobalt blue eyes drinking in the beauty of the world around him, a smile that spoke of endless possibilities and feeling playing over his gamin face. And his hair! Deep, chestnut brown, accented with honeyed hues and streaks of lighter reddish colour- it was long, held back in a gleaming braid that reached his hips and followed each movement of his lithe form. He was magnificent.

I watched him closely. Being what I am, it was an easy task- I could follow him effortlessly, cloaking my presence whenever it seemed that he could feel me closeness, but still following and learning.

His name was Duo Maxwell, and he was American, studying in Paris at the University- the Sorbonne[4]. He was poor- he would not have been able to afford his stay in the French capitol had it not been for some well-deserved study grants. He had no family- they had all died when he was young.

He loved life- you could see it in every move he made, in the way his eyes caressed the world. He had misfortunes, like most mortals have, but he seemed to have discovered how to get past them and on to better times, never forgetting the past, though. Cherishing memories for what they were.

I knew that he had seen glimpses of me- at first, I had been angered by it. I hadn’t wanted him to know that I was there. I am not, after all, a fellow mortal. I am a Dragon, and I will live forever. He will die and pass on into another plane of existence.

After a while, though, it became a sort of game. He would spin towards me, and I would meet his magnificent eyes for a short moment before I vanished on the very wind. I found myself looking forward to it, wishing to once again feel the searing, painful ecstasy of his gaze, to hear his voice calling out and asking who I was, what I was doing there… Watching, but never touching.

That had to be forbidden. Besides, I had no idea what that touch could do to me. To feel the heat of his body under that silky-looking skin, feeling the muscles underneath contracting, his mortal strength as he touched me back, maybe even to taste that skin, taste his blood and savour the essence of his life…

It was temptation in the extreme, so great that even a Dragon, the Dragon of Life, fell victim to it.

His friends had persuaded him to accompany them to a club of some sort. He had looked magnificent, black leather pants fitting his slim form as though they had been made for him, a blue shirt that matched his eyes fitting tightly to his upper body and outlining every inch of him to perfection, black boots with slight heels to them, like a Spanish dancer’s, his hair cascading down his back in a glorious waterfall from its loose ponytail. Most men would have looked ridiculous with that much hair- he simply looked… masculine.

He looked like a dream, only Dragons don’t dream.

I watched him from afar as he danced- he did that as he did everything else-as though he was born to it. His whole body moving to the sensual beat, slender hips rocking back and forth, hands running over himself as though he could make love to the air, eyes closed, lips parted sensuously, full and pouting in his magnificent, flushed face… I could no more stay away from such a picture than I could die.

I approached him from behind- I wasn’t ready for him to see me, as yet. My eyes were fastened to the sinuous grace of him as I let the music take me over, as well. I could feel the pulsating beat, almost like a second heart, and I couldn’t help wondering at the sensation- no matter how many different clubs and mob scenes I had been witness to in the past, none had ever given me this feeling, this driving need to be a part of it and to touch, to feel…

My hands slid around him in a delicate dance, shockwaves of pure energy dancing through my body as first fingertips, then palms and finally whole hands moved over his warm, firm body. I heard his gasp of surprise as I pulled his body back against me and buried my face in the crook of his neck, inhaling deeply. He only froze for an instant- I think he knew it was me. But he kept moving, his body brushing against mine sensually, every touch sending sweet glimmers of pleasure through me, like absinthe in my veins.

He tried to turn and face me but my arms held him firmly in place- my fingers trailed down his finely-muscled arms and his body, and my lips moved to the base of his neck of their own accord. Duo was intoxicating- his scent, the taste of his skin, the feel of him against me, the music pounding in both our minds as he ceased trying to turn and gave in to the feelings gripping him, eyes slipping closed again as his tongue wet his lips and he allowed me to do as I wished, my tongue slipping out to trail over his flesh.

It was too much- feelings and sensations assaulted my mind as he surrendered to me- I could feel his trust in me in every move he made, in the submissive way he closed his eyes and let me touch him- I could feel a heady heat all over my body, the hardening of the flesh between my legs, the racing of my heart.

I leaned forward and I whispered into his ear, knowing that my voice would carry over the music’s heavy bass beat, “Magnificent creature- you belong to me.”

He froze, and his eyes opened in shock, but I was already gone. I watched from a distance as he blinked, dazed, his body crying out at the loss of the heat that had been drugging him, coating him in its protective, passionate shell. He looked confused for a moment, but then the most extraordinary thing happened. He smiled.

A smile is nothing so extraordinary of its own, but this smile… It was a million things in one. His confusion was tempered by trust- he had recognised me as the one he had seen and felt watching him for so long, and he somehow knew that he had nothing to fear from me. His eyes contained an entire world- heat, intrigue, passion, curiosity, innocence, bliss… It took a supreme act of will for even the Dragon of Life to leave him there, confused and frustrated.

But I had spoken to him, and I had claimed him. He was now my mortal.

I knew deep in my heart that he would never forget that.

-Duo:-

He had been there- he had touched me and laid his claim on me and strangely enough, I had felt no reason to fight it. One minute, I was alone, the power of the music seeping into my very bones, and the next… hands slipping around me from behind and a body coming into contact with mine, hot, solid, powerful… I knew who it had to be immediately, and I tried to turn look into those eyes again, but he held me firmly, and I allowed him to do it, to mold his body into mine and move me, feel me…

I could feel his lips against my neck, and it sent shivers through me- I remember feeling lucky that the music had covered up the small moan of longing that slipped from my lips. His hands were running over me possessively, and I cried out as the lips on me parted and a warm tongue began to taste me, hands rubbing over my chest as our hips rocked in unison. I couldn’t have fought him, I don’t think. I know one thing for certain- I had no wish to, and I was ready to let him do as he wished.

I had no idea who it was who was touching me and arousing every part of me so completely, and I didn’t care. It was my watcher- it was the owner of those incredible eyes, whose presence had lingered on my senses for weeks, the touch of whose eyes I had begun to yearn for, which made my tingle of heady pleasure all the greater when he was there. It wasn’t normal-he wasn’t normal. The truth- by then, I didn’t care. He was like a drug in my mind, and I knew that I would do what I had to for another fix.

I felt his breath against my neck and ear, the heat of him sending shivers of pleasure through me, and then he spoke, in a low, musical voice that sent ecstasy shooting though me and thrummed with the beat of the music in my mind, “Magnificent creature- you belong to me.”

I was instantly rock hard at the very thought- my eyes flew open in shock, but I was too late. I felt the heat of him vanish from behind me, and I vaguely wondered if my body had left his tingling as his had left mine as I cast around, looking for him, longing to see those eyes staring back out at me.

No- the same sense that told me that I could trust him completely was telling me that he was truly gone. My entire body was on fire- every place he had touched ached so incredibly that I found myself wishing it would never end. And the feeling of cloth over my erection tantalised me like I couldn’t believe, so that even the slightest movement sent waves of pleasure all through me.

I don’t remember my trip home- it was a blur of sensation for which I have no words that would be able to capture the feelings that coursed through me. But I reached my small studio apartment on the Rue Monge[5] and I cried out as I closed the door behind me, finally able to give in to what had been teasing me devilishly the whole way back. My own hands were running over the planes of my body, but it took less than a thought to convince my mind that they were his hands touching me. Slipping underneath my shirt and finding my already hardened nipples, stroking and pinching them until I moaned, pulling the shirt off my body…

I popped open the button of my pants and slid the zipper down slowly, grunting and whimpering as the grating of the steel teeth sent a shiver down my spine. I was harder than I think I had ever been before, and I nearly lost it immediately as I touched myself, stroking my cock in a steady rhythm, eyes closed, panting for air as I quickly lost myself in my fantasy- he was touching me, stroking me with an ever increasing pace as his mouth moved over my body, his own erection grinding against my leg as we both began to moan helplessly, and his voice whispered in my ear, “Come for me- let me see you come.”

I came with a hoarse shout, my whole body spasming wildly as I shot my load all over my chest and hands. My mind was on fire, and I could almost see those eyes gleaming as they watched me, hear his breath catching in his throat…

“Beautiful, but soon, it will be with me inside you, my mortal…”

I sat straight up, my eyes darting through the shadows wildly- that was his voice- I was certain of it! But how…

Our eyes locked- his obsidian stare was pinning me to the spot, though the rest of him remained cloaked in the shadow cast by the large armoire. His eyes moved, and I could see them trailing over me...

Focusing on my chest, where my own essence was slowly trailing over me with every shuddering breath I took. I caught his eyes again as one hand moved over me and came to my mouth- I licked the salty, tangy substance off my finger slowly, enjoying the flash of heat I saw in his eyes as I sucked the digit into my mouth. As I heard his breath catching, I smiled at him. “As you wish.”

An answering smile came from the darkness- I caught the flash of a dim light form the street on his teeth and I watched in disbelief as he seemed to dissolve into the very shadow he stood in until only his eyes remained. I continued to stare, refusing to break the precious contact.

His voice touched me again, like a silken caress, “Sleep now, and remember- Dragon Wufei has claimed you.”

I felt a heavy exhaustion running all through me, and I did not fight as I fell softly back against the pillow. I knew now- he had a name. His name was Wufei.

-The Dragon:-

I watched him constantly.

The images of him refused to leave my mind, Duo, his face drawn in deep pleasure as he touched himself, slender, graceful hands running over his body and encircling his beautiful cock, eyes glinting in lust and welcome as they bored into mine and he licked his own essence off of that finger… I had wanted to lap the precious substance from his skin- I had been burning with curiosity to know what his essence tasted like, but I was still unready to let him see me.

He was all that I saw in my mind, and I still couldn’t understand why.

He knew I was watching him- his hips swayed just that little bit more, so enticingly, his face was bright, eyes sparkling and darting to the shadows whenever he got a chance to look for me- I didn’t let him see me, only feel my presence.

“Where are you? I know you are here, Wufei…” I felt a tremor of emotion at the sound of my name on his lips, as though it was dripping with honey. I had given many names for myself over the centuries, but never that one. Never my real name- that I had saved, I found myself realising, for this slender, elfin boy with his beautiful dreams and gleaming eyes.

His friends noticed his distraction. One, a golden-haired boy by the name of Quatre, was especially worried for Duo, watching him ever so carefully whenever he could…

But nights were mine. My Dragon senses spread through the small studio apartment, I whispered in his ear, about myself, about my long life, about him and everything he made me feel. Duo trembled- his eyes were obediently closed as I spoke. I found it remarkably sweet, how submissive he was to me, how he blindly did as I asked, how his entire face seemed to glow as he came, imagining that I was touching him. The smell of sex on him was more powerful than anything I had ever encountered. It had taken every ounce of my will to keep from touching him again.

I knew- I knew that I would not be able to handle it. Whatever it was that was building in my mind would no longer be able to hold itself in. I would claim his body the next time I touched him, and I came to realise that I could never do that without his consent. He was too important to me for that.

I watched as he brushed his magnificent hair, after a shower. He had become used to my presence, even at his most intimate of moments by then, and he sat, unaffected, on the edge of his bed as he brushed. His hair was, as always, an object of beauty far beyond anything else that human hands ever touched. It shone in the low lights of the apartment, light glinting off of coppery strands, caressing the deep coloured tresses as I wanted to. It was no good- I could be the air- I could touch him like that, whisper through his hair, brush over his beautiful, flawless skin, but it was not the same. A breath of air cannot smell the lingering scent of his shampoo, taste the light sheen of sweat on his body, caress his straining cock, taste it, possess it…

I came to myself- he was sitting at his desk with his hair still loose around him, as he knew I liked it. Duo was always working- he had to keep his grades up in order to remain qualified for his scholarships, and he took that very seriously. Yet he had still left his hair loose, as though asking me to touch it and play with it, almost begging for it…

He wanted me, and that knowledge excited me more than anything else I had ever experienced in my long life. It was completely irresistible.

Windy fingers teased through his hair and brushed the back of his neck, and Duo gasped. “Wufei?” His voice was low and breathy.

“Close your eyes,” I ordered gently, smiling to myself as he did so, leaning back from the yet unfinished work on his table. A smile played over his full lips, and his breath was already coming in shorter gasps as he just thought about me. It was intoxicating to think that I had such an effect on this boy. My body materialised in his small room- who was I to show restraint when he wanted this so badly?

I still didn’t touch him, though. I commanded him to stand and return to his bed, pulling off his clothing as he moved. He was already hard by the time he reached the bed, and I licked my lips as I imagined all the things I could ask him to do for me. I knew what I wanted to do, but I had to be sure…

It only took a small mental command. I smiled in satisfaction as he laid himself down on the bed and cuffs materialised around his wrists and ankles, holding him spread out on the bed, his hair spread around him like a corona.

“Ah- you look beautiful like this, mortal. So beautiful,” I whispered, drawing to the bedside soundlessly and staring down at him. His eyes were still tightly closed, his face relaxed in a show of total trust. I gestured and a small whisp of air trailed up his body, like a tongue running from his navel to his throat.

Duo gasped for air and shuddered hard- my eyes were glued to his glistening cock as it stirred and trembled. “What shall I do with you now, mortal? Do you want it?”

He was so enticing- his tongue slipped out to wet his lips before he whispered back to me, “Anything you want, Dragon. I want you.”

My whole body reacted to the sound of his voice saying those words. He wanted me- he freely admitted it. He wanted to become the concubine of the Dragon of Life. And I wanted him. Leaning over him, I did what I had promised myself I wouldn’t do- I ran my fingers up over his exposed skin until my hands were splayed over his chest. I leaned even closer, allowing him a moment to feel my breath on his skin before I licked one pert nipple, catching it gently between my teeth and playfully toying with it.

He moaned at my touch- I had never heard a sweeter sound, or so I thought, as that, not in all my existence, as either Dragon or human. And the taste of him- it was something more incredible than the sweetest honey, more intoxicating than brandy, more sensual than any blushing virgin. He was perfection in human form.

I licked my way up his throat, revelling in the deep moans it drew from him, and I paused as I stared down at his pursed lips. That would be the point of no return- to taste those lips and slip my tongue into the cavern of his mouth, share his breath… I wanted it as I had never wanted anything.

Duo cried out into my mouth as our lips met for the first time- my head spun as though I had been drinking expensive wine, and I felt more than heard my own moan as I deepened the kiss, stroking his lips and tongue with my own, exploring his generous mouth with my own as I lowered my body onto his. I gasped as he absently thrust his hips forward into mine and rubbed against the raging hardness still encased in my pants.

I smiled as I pulled back from out kiss- he was mine. Other gods might lust after him, other humans might fall for him, but he would belong solely to me. I wanted nothing more than to own the passion-filled beauty whose body was responding so openly to my touch. My own hardness was painfully tight, and I revelled in the new, strange feeling as I stared down at my chosen one. I ran my fingers down his face, over his closed eyelids. “Not yet, my sweet. When the time is right- only then will I take you. But now…” I slithered down his body as only a Dragon God can, shivering at the moan it drew from his exposed throat, and I ran the tip of my tongue over his dripping erection, lapping up the dew at its tip like the ambrosia it was. “Now the Dragon will devour you.”

He cried out as I engulfed his proud, erect member in my mouth, and I cried out, as well, at just the thought of finally doing this and tasting the beauty I had savoured from a distance. He thrashed beneath me as I drank down his every movement, lapping, sucking, worshipping, tasting, adoring. I looked up to see the ecstasy on his face, drowning in the look of pure sensuality that graced his features, even with his eyes closed, and I smiled as I laughed around him, appreciating the moans and shivers my laugh sent through him.

He came with a shout of my name, and I greedily drank him down, hitting my own state of nirvana as he lost his control. I have said before that Dragons do not dream, and that much is true. But they do fantasise, and I had spent long hours contemplating how he would taste as he came in my mouth, at my complete mercy. None of those musings could compare to this. I felt wicked and divine at the same time, and I knew that there was one last thing I needed to do to begin his initiation to my world.

I slithered back up over him and claimed his kiss, sharing the unique taste of him as I straddled his form and absently thrust against his hard abdomen. My clothes were gone with less than a thought, and I rubbed my hardness over him in an ever increasing pace, kissing him hard, possessively as I moved over his soft, warm skin. I felt my own climax building and I did nothing to hold it back, pulling his head back and to the side with my hand buried in his hair. I kissed his neck, my teeth scoring over his sensitised flesh with the skill of a seasoned creature. As my mind broke in its orgasmic state, I bit down hard, drawing blood.

Dragons are not blood drinkers- our art is a much higher form of life appreciation than that base, uncouth craving for the heated life force of another creature. All the same, the primal instinct of the common ancestors of all creatures flows in my veins as it flows anywhere else, and the Dragon inside of me glorified at the warm, coppery taste of his life in my mouth. Duo was crying out, and part of me cringed at the small whimper of pain in the sound while the other part exalted in the overwhelming scream of pleasure it was all lost in. I bent to lick my own come off of his body, lapping at it delicately, as a cat would drink its milk.

He still hadn’t opened his eyes, my mortal companion.

I returned to the wound I had caused at his neck, and I sucked the last drops of blood away from the rapidly closing wound, marvelling as the two tastes intermingled in my mouth. I then moved to kiss him again.

He whimpered in passion as our tongues met and intertwined- he knew what he was tasting on my lips, and I think it excited him to know that I had drank of his blood. I drew away from him regretfully, kissing his face repeatedly as his bonds faded away into nothingness and he relaxed back into the soft confines of his bed. My body was curled about his, my hair now loose and flowing down around us as he nuzzled at my neck, his tongue flicking out to draw a lazy, searing line over my flesh.

Kissing his eyelids again, I brushed his silky hair back from his face and brushed my lips against his. “Open your eyes,” I commanded.

-Duo:-

Every place he touched on my body felt like it was burning, and it felt so good and hot that I wished it could never stop. Even that spot where his teeth had torn my flesh and he had drank my blood- I could do no more than whimper as I felt his tongue pass over it again, filling me with an erotic ache that threatened to consume my soul.

My Dragon- he had claimed me and I wanted nothing more than to be whatever he wanted me to be, do what he wanted me to do, submit to his will and finally feel his body thrusting hard into mine, exploding within me and marking me with his essence. My soul was of little consequence to the endless possibility and life I felt in every one of his touches and caresses.

His lips touched mine one last time, and I nearly cried out in shock as his low, sexy voice uttered a command- “Open your eyes.” I was allowed to? I could finally see what the master of my soul looked like?

I obeyed him, of course, and I gasped as he was revealed to me for the first time.

His skin glowed, a golden, caramel-like colour that positively shone with life and vitality, his beautiful hair falling about his face in a drop of pure obsidian silk, glistening in the half light of my small room. His eyes- how does one put to words the look in the eyes of a Dragon? He was youth and old age, happiness and sorrow, pure bliss and unadulterated pain, light and dark… And it all showed in his eyes. I stared deep into his eyes and I knew- I could easily fall into them and continue falling forever without ever reaching the bottom. He was the Dragon of Life.

I smiled up at him- I had never seen anything to compare to Wufei’s brilliant beauty, his sheer sensuality. “A pleasure to meet you, Dragon.”

He laughed at the sheer inappropriateness of my greeting, and the sound of his laughter was like water falling, pure and perfect. “I do not disappoint you, mortal?”

I shook my head, my eyes widening in disbelief- how could this creature, this exotic, splendid being, possibly disappoint anyone? “No, Wufei. You are more than beautiful. I am quite pleased with my Dragon.”

He kissed me again, and I allowed him to dominate the contact, feeling a rush as his strong arms encircled my body and held me tightly to his. “It does not frighten you to take a Dragon to your bed? I could kill you with less than a thought, Mortal.”

I laughed as I shook my head again. “I don’t fear you. I’m not sure why, but I don’t.”

He ran his tongue over my lips again and I kissed him, stroking him with every move I made. “I think… I think I love you, Dragon.”

I felt sleep tugging at me, and I couldn’t help wondering if it was real or just the result of him, manipulating my mind. I didn’t care anymore- I was his, and I knew it, but he was mine, as well. He settled me back into my bed and covered me like a living blanket.

He was gone when I woke again, and I did not see him for three days.

-The Dragon:-

Was what I was feeling called love?

I knew instantly that he spoke the truth- he did truly love me, and he was willing to give everything he had to me, to become my creature, in effect. It awed me-I had never met a soul who was so willing to give, without demanding something in return. Duo had once again managed to astound me, through his impossible generosity.

I watched him sleep- he was still more beautiful than anything else, even with the small mark marring his beautiful skin, where I had drank of his blood.

His blood- it had been more incredible than champagne, its heady, strong, living texture searing me and marking me. I had taken only a small taste of him, and the beast inside of me yearned to taste more. It would have been disgustingly easy to do, as he slumbered in my arms, and I caught myself licking at his throat again, sucking gently to draw blood to the surface before I knew what I was doing.

What was this lack of control?

It was wholly true- I could have killed him easily-anything, in order to get another taste of his exquisite soul and life. I could have, but it would mean never looking into those cobalt blue eyes ever again, never tasting the spice of his orgasm, never mating him and screaming his name as I came inside of him…

That was lust- I knew that feeling well.

So how about love- could that have qualified for the remainder of my feelings towards him? The yearning to see him and know that he was well, to see his smile, to hear his laugh, listen to his dreams? The Earth-shattering feeling of happiness as he told me he loved me?

I stayed away from him for the next few days- I could see his disappointment when he couldn’t even feel my presence at his side. I felt his frustration as he realised that I was not going to allow him to see me, his pain as he dreamt of kissing me and woke to a cold, empty bed. I was testing myself, in truth. If this was love that I felt, it would surely come clear to me as I made myself simply watch.

After all, if I didn’t really love him, what right did I have to claim him? Any number of people could have served to be my connection to humanity, my teacher. But to become my possession and, in so doing, lay a claim to part of my soul for all eternity… I would possess him and he would possess me, and it was far too heavy a burden to thrust onto one who I would tire of in a few centuries, whose life I would eventually drain in a fit of despair as I realised how lonely eternity was all over again.

I would not do it to him, or to myself. We both deserved better than that!

I followed him, as ever. Some might think it unfair that I used my Dragon senses to feel him the whole time, but so I did. I was with him as he sat through long classes and took notes, I hungered at his side as he stood in line at the bakery down near Place Maubert[6], I teased around him on the wind as he walked his nights away along the banks of the river and immersed himself in the crowded Beaubourg[7], yearning for some sign of me and the heat it brought to him. It felt incredible, knowing that he was pursuing me, feeling the lust other mortals around him felt as he passed and knowing that he wanted none of them. He wanted me- no one else but me.

In dance clubs at night, unable to concentrate on his work- I almost went to him, as he shone like a jewel on the dance floor. I was never far away, always close enough to reach out to him. I shadowed his footsteps in the Petit Quartier[8], read over his shoulder as he tried in vain to regain his concentration.

It was on the third day that I realised what it was that I was feeling.

He could not feel my presence- I had made certain of that. But I was there- I was hidden, much as I had been in the beginning of our relationship.

He didn’t see them coming, but I did, and even then I was too late as a hand came out of nowhere and startled my mortal from his reverie- about me, ironically.

Strong arms closed around his body as a hand clamped over his mouth- he was being pulled into the Jardin des Plantes[9], back into the trees that surrounded the greenhouses. My Duo struggled mightily, but it was no use- one of the thugs that had grabbed him drew out a wicked-looking blade and held it as his throat. I felt a cold pit opening in my stomach as he went limp, his eyes focusing on that blade, as his mind quaked- his parents had been killed in a stabbing, when he had been just a tiny boy.

I felt his fear, and anger burst in my heart, the Dragon raising its head as I moved on the wind. They were tearing at his jacket, trying to get to the body under the layers of cloth. They were going to violate my mortal, my Duo…

Never! They would not hurt him, I could never permit that!

He struggled again as his jacket was torn from his body, and the man holding the knife smirked evilly as he nicked Duo’s perfect skin.

If it hadn’t been bad enough before, they were spilling his blood, that precious liquid that I craved and worshipped, as it was what gave him life… I knew, at that moment, that there was nothing I wouldn’t do to protect that life, and not simply because it belonged to me. I wanted to protect it because it was his- because he was Duo- he was life itself. He was my life.

My hand closed around a man’s throat, and the other two cried out in shock and sudden fear as I threw him into the bole of a tree with very little effort. Their fear felt good- this was true justice in the making. They had to pay for their sins- and I had come to collect, personally.

Duo’s cobalt eyes shone in a mixture of fear and relief as my own began to glow- I could feel my Dragon instincts growing inside of me, and I knew what that had to mean. I was taking my Dragon form.

-Duo:-

I knew without looking who my saviour was, and the relief that flooded me was liberally mixed with wonder as I watched the change that had come over my love. Ebony eyes glowed in his face a strange jade green colour, and I could almost have sworn that his golden skin was flecked with Dragon scales as his fingers began to lengthen, forming into cruel claws that swiped viciously at my attackers, tearing their lives away as easily as I had torn pieces from my baguette that morning for breakfast.

Wufei had been there all along. He had been watching over me- I knew it! He loved me, as well! I mean, I would have loved him forever, but who was I to attract and hold the heart of a Dragon God? I was mortal.

He finally turned back to me with the lamplight gleaming on his golden scales and flowing hair, and I was caught in a quandary- how was I to show my acceptance of him, my fervent wish that he would want to stay with me- that I could make him happy?

I smiled as it came to me. How incredibly simple! My Dragon- my beautiful, marvelous Dragon- I would give him what he wanted.

-The Dragon:-

I felt a jolt running through me as the terror in those magnificent eyes faded away and he smiled- I would gladly have given my life for that smile. And even then, his next gesture shook me completely.

Duo walked until he was literally inches from me before he fell to his knees. He smiled once more into my eyes. And his head dropped back, exposing his neck to me- exposing the still bleeding wound that was there to my hungry sight.

His gift to me- his very life.

I could not resist the pull of that blood, as it trickled over his pale, beautiful skin. I drew close and felt my eyes roll back into my head in pleasure as my tongue slipped out and lapped delicately at the stream.

The same feeling of euphoria- I felt his blood singing in my mind as my lips closed around the wound and I sucked gently, clutching him against my body in an almost bruising grip. I drank my fill before moving to claim his lips again, sharing the taste of his blood with him. Duo moaned as I claimed his mouth, sucking hungrily on my tongue and the last remnants of his delicious blood.

I loved him- I was certain of it, and that meant that the time had come.

It was time to make my claim.

The mating of a Great Dragon was no simple matter. There is much involved that the mortal mind cannot hope to understand. And it took time.

That was the most difficult part of it for me- I wanted nothing more than to bury myself inside of him and complete him, even to let him take me in return, and yet…

I could not. For thirty days and thirty nights, I was forbidden to come into contact with him whatsoever- no kisses, no caresses, no more tastes of his life in the ruby red flow of his blood… Such were the rules of the ritual joining.

All the same, I spent as much time at his side as I could, talking with him, sharing my thoughts with him, meeting his friends and seeing the world through his eyes. It had always been a beautiful place to me- I loved my world, my Earth, as only one who had seen its very birth could. Yet his views, his insights, brought tears to my eyes.

Sunlight on the fountain of the Jardin de Luxembourg[10] captivated his mind. The rich taste of a chocolat chaud[11] brought a bright gleam to his eyes. The wind whipping at his braid as we walked the quais[12] made him giggle, and the solemn beauty of the Pere Lachaise[13] brought to him the silence of contemplation and a realisation of how precious it all was.

It is easy, when you shall live forever, to forget- to lose sight of the things that make existence so precious, no matter how short a time a soul resides on this Earth. But as I stood at his side, arguing politics in a small café off the Boulevard St Germain, or visiting the Louvre with his friend Quatre and seeing a well-known piece of art as though for the first time, every time… The wonder and beauty of it was coming back to me again.

It wasn’t because I hadn’t seen it before, either. No- it was simply because he was there with me. That was the true power of humanity- their ability to love and to change their world for each other by doing so. As we stared into each others’ eyes on that thirtieth night, it was all clear to me.

He was my world.

-Duo:-

The time had come. I was naturally nervous- that night, he would finally take me and make me his. The idea was so magnificent that, I’m afraid, every attempt I made that day to appear calm and collected was utterly useless.

Still, I remember Quatre’s smile as we parted that day. He knew that something was happening- how could he not? He was my best friend. He hugged me against his chest in a brotherly fashion as I turned to go, and his eyes spoke to me sweetly- ‘Go to Wufei, and be happy. Bonne chance, felicitations, et je vous souhaite tout le bonheur du monde, ensemble![14]’ I did not see him again for a very long time.

My Dragon had many abilities, and I laughed out loud in sheer amazement that evening as he demonstrated one of them to me. His touch was all it took- we were flying over Paris, hand in hand, the world rushing by beneath us and the wind around us. He was taking me somewhere I had never been before- almost symbolically leaving my past life behind us in that small, cozy apartment. None of it mattered to me.

I have no idea how long we flew or even where we ended up. All I knew was that we were back on solid ground. Trees rose regally around us, and I followed his gaze to a wide set of stone steps, leading into the trees that surrounded us. I held out my hand to him and stared into his eyes.

As he took my hand, we started up the steps, surrounded by the sounds of the night and bathed in moonlight. Normally, I would have been smiling and joking as we walked through such a dream-like setting, but I fell silent. The wrong words had no place here. There was a joyous solemnity to this place like nothing else I had ever felt, and I let it embrace me, contenting myself to the feel of my love’s hand in mine.

We reached the top of the strange stairs all too quickly, and for a split second, I felt unhappy that the moment was ending. Then I turned.

And I caught my breath.

-The Dragon:-

My old place recognised me, even after all these long centuries that I have been gone. Silver light glistened from the shallow pools surrounding the Dragon’s Lair, carved stone pillars surrounding my seat, my bed, as I knew it would be, draped in jade green and blue satin. A small waterfall trickled down by the head of the bed, its sound like the tinkling of minute bells.

Duo’s eyes were wide and beautiful as he drank in the beauty of it, and they filled with warmth as I drew him close. This was my place- it was to be our place. I felt the catch in his breath as our bodies came into full contact for the first time in thirty one days, and I felt my own mind exploding with love as our eyes slipped closed and our lips met.

My entire body was alive as it had never been before. My love, my chosen one, my eternal companion… Duo fit perfectly in my arms and against my body, as if we were pieces of the same puzzle, and as his mouth opened beneath mine and his tongue slipped into my mouth, I felt it happening- the magic was gathering around us.

I drew him down onto the cushions, our clothing long gone and forgotten as naked bodies pressed together in complete abandon. I kissed every part of him I could reach, touching his magnificent body, my hands on his perfect cock while he reached for mine-

His lips were trailing over me, his hot mouth suckling at my nipples, tongue darting into my navel. His warm, damp breath was bathing my hardened cock, and I caught the mischievous glint of his eyes as full, luscious lips parted and engulfed me whole.

It was a beautiful sensation, being savoured and eaten, his mouth moving to the sensitive sac of flesh between my legs and sucking gently as he traced patterns over me with his tongue. His lips were gliding down my cock again, slowly, achingly slowly…

I growled deep in my throat as I disengaged my hardness from his torture and flipped us over so that he was pinned to the cushions by my own body, assaulting his lips with my own. My hands trailed down over him, pressing his legs wide open as I moved between them.

I ran my tongue up his cock from base to tip, watching with growing excitement as his entire body reacted to the sensation, tiny beads of sweat breaking out and making his skin take on an ethereal glow in the silver light. As my mouth engulfed him, I felt his hands burying themselves in my hair, urging me on in my explorations of his body. He was moaning incoherently, thrusting into my mouth mindlessly as I sucked, knowing what would come next…

His climax was explosive, and the sound of my name breaking on his lips was almost enough to send me to join him in nirvana. The taste of him was more than just delectable- it was intoxicating, to the point that I almost forgot not to swallow it all.

His eyes opened quickly as his breathing levelled out, and Duo met my eyes. “I love you, Wufei… I love you…”

I slipped one semen-coated finger down between the cleft of his beautiful buttocks as I surged back up to claim those sweet lips. I stared down into his eyes. “There will be no going back from this, Duo. Are you sure you really want it?” My finger slipped into his tight opening, and I felt him tense-

He forced his body to relax quickly. “I want it- I want you. I want to belong to you, please…”

He gasped as I pumped the lone finger inside of him, a smile of passion spreading over his features as I continue to prepare him with first another finger and then a third.

I coated my cock with his come as I watched him and the beauty of his face. My fingers slipped from his body, and the small crinkle of disapproval that touched his forehead almost made me laugh. But those remarkable cobalt eyes opened in surprise as I slowly rubbed the head of my cock over his entrance, silently begging him for permission to finish our act…

Our eyes locked onto each other as I slowly pushed into his body- the incredible tightness of him took my breath away, squeezing me, taunting me, destroying my precious control as I impaled him. His eyes positively glowed with love and devotion as I filled him, legs wrapping around me as I became fully seated within him.

I had less than a moment’s notice- his eyes twinkled for a mere second before his inner muscles contracted wildly around my length, and my eyes rolled back into my head as I withdrew from his boy almost completely, only to thrust again, harder, deeper.

“Dragon! Yes! More- deeper, harder, please…” I could not resist the call of that voice, and I began thrusting in and out of him faster, driving myself as far into him as I could, crying out at the deliriously splendid feeling of his body surrounding me, accepting me, making love to me…

I could feel our climax building, and I reached down to take hold of his beautiful cock and pump him in time with my thrusts. My other hand wandered up to his throat- he seemed to understand, and he turned his head of his own accord for me, exposing the fine, creamy skin of his throat to me. My lips fastened to him, and I sucked and licked, nipped and kissed, as though the next day would not come.

He was whimpering underneath me, and I felt my head beginning to spin, my climax swiftly approaching. I pounded into him, each powerful thrust hitting the special spot inside of him exquisitely. His body was beginning to spasm around me-

I pulled out of him completely and thrust hard forward one last time, penetrating him completely as fire burned through all my senses- I could feel his orgasm hitting as well- his seed spilling over us as I filled him with my essence. Screaming his name. Clutching his body close against me. Reaching between us to scoop some of his come onto my fingers and smear his throat with it, and then my own, in a matching spot.

I ran a fingernail over my skin- I didn’t feel it at all as my skin tore, and a ribbon of red coursed down. His eyes were wide and hazy as the magic of our partnering took him over, pounding around us with the same delirious intensity as our shared climax. I whispered to him, “Drink, my love.”

Duo’s lips on my throat, lapping delicately at my skin, barely skimming over my wound in his infinite care- I moaned out loud and nuzzled at his throat for a short moment- His lips closed over my throat and I moaned in sheer bliss as he sucked hungrily, drinking my life as he knew I would soon do to him, as well.

He cried out as my teeth sank into him and spilled his hot, scintillating blood into my mouth- I began to drink form him, the feeling of his life pouring into me, even as I felt my own life reaching out to him. The very air around us crackled with energy.

-Duo:-

Wufei’s blood on my lips and in my mouth was like drinking nectar- I could not get enough of it, and as his teeth sank into me again, I felt a jolt of pure passion. I sucked at him again as he pulled back from my, my mind reeling in the throes of ecstasy as his hot, living blood poured into me with a feeling of dying and being reborn all at once.

The Dragon’s Blood- it was hot in my veins, like as though molten gold ran through me, and I was instantly hard again as I felt him crying out against me, his own hardness against my hip, begging to me touched. I stroked him hotly as I coated my hard shaft with our spilt blood and positioned myself between his legs, thrusting forward and into him, taking him, my mind reeling as he cried out to me and met my invasion. He rolled me over and began to ride me hard, eyes closed, face drawn in passion, hands beating a furious rhythm over his own erection until we both screamed into the night, my seed erupting into him as his own sprayed onto my chest, stars dancing in his eyes, glowing skin, heaving breath, passion, beauty…

I pulled his unresisting form down into my arms and I kissed him gently, still tasting my own blood on his lips. Every sense I possessed was tingling in the aftermath of our joining. Sight, smell, hearing, touch… all heightened and all focused on the man in my arms, my Dragon.

I cradled him close against me- I was now his. His possession. His demi-God companion. His lover. His. Nothing had ever felt so right, and I knew that I would never regret this.

I fell asleep with Wufei curled against my chest, my arms wrapped around him.

-The Dragon:-

If I had thought Duo beautiful before our joining, he was expotentially more so as I woke in his arms.

My Love- his skin possessed the same vitality as my own, gleaming rosy cream, warm, smooth, unblemished. Hair falling over both of us, gleaming in the bright sunlight of my lair and flecked through with strands of pure copper and ruby become living material. And as his eyes opened- I found myself drowning in a sea of blue that was so intense and alive that it was almost violet. Full lips moving in a smile as I leaned into him and claimed another kiss.

We were now linked, and I could feel his wonder at everything he was seeing and feeling with his new awareness- it brought a smile to my face. His cheeks were flushed with excitement as he smiled up at me. “I feel… Wufei, I feel so alive! And everything…” His words trailed off as his eyes slipped to the world around us and he saw it for the first time with a Dragon’s eyes. “It’s… oh Lord!” Tears spilled down his cheeks as he smiled radiantly. “It’s all so beautiful.”

I kissed the tears from his face and nuzzled at his lips. “Welcome to my world, Love.”

His eyes were wide. “But I’m… and you’re… Wufei, tell me what has happened to us.”

I stared down into those endless eyes. “We are bonded, my Duo. So I am a part of you now… and a part of the Dragon is now in you.”

Duo was dumbfounded, and I brushed a lock of his fragrant hair back from his face gently as I smiled into his eyes. “Do you like it?”

He responded with a fierce kiss, and I responded in kind, my body reawakening against his as his arms tightened around me possessively. He tasted fresh and clean and hot as our tongues met and sparred between us and I settled between his legs, my hips grinding forward into his in a primeval dance of arousal.

My cock slowly sank into his beautiful body, stretching him leisurely to my invasion as my hand found the upright sign of his passion and began stroking. His tongue ran over my collarbones and up my throat slowly, dancing over my flesh and sending the most delightful shivers through me until I was entirely a creature of my senses, knowing nothing but the feeling of his body around me and touching me. Tendrils of ecstasy flared over me, and I made no effort to stop him as he rolled us over, still impaled on my heavy hardness.

I stared in worship at the picture he presented as he began to rock back and forth on my body, creamy skin against the gold of my own, hair flying around us, eyes feverishly bright as he drew himself up, only to plunge back down again over my cock, heat and pressure surrounding me and pulsating around me until I felt my mind would shatter in pleasure.

His skin was flushed and glowing in a faint sheen of sweat as his pace increased, and I growled deeply as I seized his slender hips and began to drive into him, meeting each of his moves with one of my own, mating him as his voice rose to the sky again, hands joining mine as they stroked his cock. He arched his back as his eyes closed, his face drawn sensually as he lost control- He cried out as he came, his seed hot on our hands and over my chest, his body tightening impossibly around me throbbing erection.

I, too, screamed to the sky as my name breaking from his lips sent my mind over the edge. I drove hard into him one last time as a climax burst, like a supernova within his body, pure elation and searing, white hot pleasure bridging both our minds and leaving us both utterly spent and sated as he collapsed onto my chest.

His hair covered us like a living blanket, and I stroked it gently as we both struggled to draw breath. His lips were moving against my throat, and I gave a minute thrust of my hips, drawing a low moan from him before I pulled free of the blissful heat of his body. My fingers stroked over his face. “I take that as a yes?”

It took him a moment to figure out what I meant, but when he did- he burst out laughing, the sound of his joy as bright as sunlight to my ears, and I soon found my own voice joining his as he hugged me tight and proceeded to tickle my exposed sides mercilessly.

Neither of us were breathing well by the time we stopped our playful wrestling, and we simply stared into each other’s faces in awe and satisfaction. He kissed my forehead gently and replied to my question, “Yes.”

-Duo:-

Thus it began, and so it continues. The world really is a beautiful place, so bright and vibrant, so full of mysteries and adventures. And of love.

It is strange, being part Dragon- I suppose I will spend eternity coming to terms with the precious gift my Wufei has given me. Our world knows no bounds and no impossibilities. Only endless opportunity and a balance in each other that is more sacred than anything the universe can offer. In this, I am both teacher and student, for Wufei can show me the treasures he has known of and lived with since the dawn of time, and through me he learns to appreciate them anew for what they are, and that is beautiful. Like him- he is more precious and breath-takingly handsome than even my enhanced mind can fully comprehend.

Of course- I have no dreams anymore. Dragons don’t dream, but I’ve found that I don’t need them. No- I am living my dreams every day, and Wufei is both the alpha and omega of it all. I love him- I will love him forever.

And now- I know precisely how long forever can be. I’m counting on it- I will never tire of him, nor him of me.

 Footnotes:

[1] Metro- the Paris underground system

[2] Grands Boulevards- all those huge, romantic old streets you hear about in Paris stories- the Champs-Elysees and all.

[3] Bibliotheque Nationale- National Library of France. Quite possibly one of the greatest libraries on Earth.

[4]Universite de Paris- Sorbonne- The Sorbonne University- one of the oldest on continental Europe. Really prestigious.

[5] Rue Monge- A somewhat famous street in the fifth arrondissement of Paris, otherwise known as the Latin Quarter.

[6] Place Maubert- a cute square located at the junction of Rue Monge and Boulevard St Germain. There really is a fantastic little bakery there…

[7] Beaubourg- A fun area in the third and fourth arrondissements, on the Right Bank. Great nightlife, but don’t stray too far North unless you really like sex shops…

[8] Petit Quartier- a small area of the Latin Quarter, just behind Avenue St Michel, across the river from Notre Dame. Fun little place with lots of restaurants and bars, a few good clubs…

[9] Jardin des Plantes: Horticultural Garden, right next to Gare d’Austerlitz, off the Seine

[10] Jardin de Luxembourg- the most beautiful garden in Paris, in my humble opinion…

[11]Chocolat chaud- they make it differently at the really good cafes- pure melted chocolate poured into steamed milk and then sweetened- there is very little that tastes quite as good.

[12] Quais- the riverbanks

[13]Pere Lachaise- a beautiful, old cemetery in the east side of Paris, the final resting point of, among others, Chopin and Jim Morrison.

[14] “Bonne chance, felicitations, et je vous souhaite tout le bonheur du monde ensemble!”- “Good luck, congratulations, and I wish you all the happiness in
the world, together!” Isn’t Quatre nice?!