Earthly Dragons - In the Service of a Dragon.

Chapter 20: New Changes.


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A Couple Relatively Eventless Days Later... - Morningish.

Rebecca hums, stretching to awaken again. She yawns, a rather loud affair for such a large dragon, then rises up from her bed, feeling a bit of an itch that she idly scratches as she pads over to her bathroom. She sniffs at the air, smelling Courtney already at work in the kitchen and smiles.

She yawns again entering the bathroom, going about her routine while still half awake, but that annoying and consistent itch seems to keep drawing her paw up to her shoulder as she scratches her fur. She giggles to herself, "Mmm, your fluff feels so soft, Courtney..."

Something about that half-formed thought feels wrong, and suddenly Rebecca jolts awake to spot the changes in the mirror, stumbling back to collide with her personal shelf, causing a clattering of various tools and shines and care-products to the floor, "Wh-what?!"

Courtney startles at the crashing sound, jumping at least a foot in the air. "The fuck w-was that?" She looks around, quickly notes it wasn't something she knocked over with her tail in the kitchen, then sighs in relief... before blinking and swallowing: "Rebecca!"

She scrambles towards the dragon's private rooms, for the moment breakfast forgotten.

Rebecca is unharmed, but fallen backwards into a bit of a big scaly pile, now covered in various colors of goo and wax, "C-Courtney! I'm in here!" As if the location of the large dragon wasn't obvious. She itches her shoulder again, then move her hand up to rub her head, "Ugh, I think the scale polish hit me a little too hard, or I'm a little too overtired..."

Courtney runs to the door... and into the doorframe as her claws fail to make enough purchase on the floor. "Rebec-oof!-ca!" The kobold gathers herself for a second before looking up at her girlfriend and the chaotic state of the bathroom: "What, um... Happened?"

Rebecca shakes her head, pushing some of the care products off of herself and untangling herself, "Ugh, I just got up wrong. I could have sworn I saw something wrong and spooked myself awake." She reaches up to itch at her shoulder again, a soft patch of fluff having grown there at some point in the night. "Sorry to have gotten you all worried... are you alright?"

Courtney looks at Rebecca all over, tilting her head. "No, I... I'm fine. Maybe get a bruise on my should..." her gaze sees the dragon's shoulder from her low vantage point and the kobold blinks a few times: "...er..."

Rebecca keeps scratching the fur, then notices Courtney's gaze. "What? Did something spill on my-" She gasps and pulls her hand away, "N-no! I Did see fur! That's why I jumped back! I... I thought I was overtired, or hallucinating or... or..."

Courtney stares for a long moment, some part of her mind rebelling against the fact that dragons, such ancient and immutable beings, could change... but then dismisses the thought as it's pretty obvious that Things Do Change.

She starts stepping around Rebecca a bit, best as she is able in the limited space. Not for the first time, her small size is useful.

"Does it hurt?"

Rebecca stares at the fur for a long time before she answers, "...It itches? B-but... it doesn't hurt..." Her mind is trying to comprehend this new development, trying to figure this out, but all she can manage to a soft, scared whisper, "I-is this what it felt like when your changes started?"

Courtney blinks, then shakes her head: "Well, my change started with my feet, kinda overnight, but..." She hums, lifting a paw to her chin: "...although yeah, whole lotta itching was involved."

Rebecca glances down at her feet, lifting her forelimbs and stretching out her toes, "Th-they seem the same... I- I-is anything else different?"

Courtney walks over to inspect Rebecca's toes, having lost any fear of being under the dragon a while back. "Mmm... nope, they look the same to me." She steps out from under Rebecca's arm and looks up at the offending tuft of fur at her shoulder: "That, though... that is new."

Rebecca cringes, almost afraid to look. She's holding together somewhat well, taking a few deep breaths, "What... what's new? Is there something else?"

Courtney hums, then lifts her hand up in a beckoning motion: "Lift me up so I can see. Your shoulder has fur, now."

Rebecca complies, lowering her palm to let Courtney climb on and lift the kobold up to her shoulder. "I... I didn't think anything would happen to me... I mean, n-not that this is bad... it's... I mean, part of me... wanted something like this... right?" She both looks and feels so torn about this.

Courtney climbs onto Rebecca's shoulder, curiously running her paws across the fur even as she gets up there. "Mmm." It's fairly obvious she has opinions on the topic, but for the moment, she occupies herself with how the new patch of draconic fur feels.

Rebecca ooo's at the sensation of Courtney's clawed hands running through the new patch of fur, "Oh, what... that feels... really nice."

Courtney blinks, then continues brushing her paws upon the fur: "...like this, then?"

Rebecca does relax, purring loudly, "Y-yeah... never had that much feeling before when you've pat my scales..."

Courtney hums, smiling as her pawns massage Courtney's 'softer' shoulders: "Mmm, so you might know what it feels like for me, now..."

Rebecca blinks, craning her neck around to look at Courtney with a bashful expression, "It feels that good? I... well... I'm glad, at least."

Courtney smirks, then pauses enough to look over the the fur across Rebecca's shoulders: "It does seem like your fur is... well, like mine, really. Except a lot bigger, of course."

Rebecca swallows, looking at her shoulder. "What... what do you think it means? Your changes are done... so... now it's my turn?"

Courtney shrugs: "Maybe." She continues touching and massaging Rebecca's shoulders, humming a bit.

Rebecca continues to purr, but her face is pensive, "Do... you think it'll be okay?" Probably a stupid question, but this is new to the dragon, and she's not quite sure what to think.

Courtney shrugs again: "I'm still here, am I not?" She then continues giving her touch to Rebecca, knowing full well how weird it feels, anyway.

Rebecca sighs, breaking into a chuckle, "You are. Thank goodness for that." She shifts, trying to get herself out of the mess she's made in the bathroom without jostling Courtney too much. "I... I shouldn't worry. I know you managed this just fine... and I know how much I love you through it all."

Courtney smiles: "I love you too. But..." She sighs inwardly a bit. "But, you know... it's okay if it worries you. You saw all of my freakouts."

Rebecca lets out a nervous laugh as she clutches her forehead in her hands, the shallow show of confidence all but breaking at Courtney's permssion, "G-good because I... I'm so scared, dear... What is this? What is it going to lead to? Y-your changes were so... so much... and I know how hard it was, and how much I tried to be supportive..."

She takes a deep breath, eyes watering, "B-but it all felt so frightening a-and helpless in watching You change."

Courtney leans onto the dragons back: "It's... well it obviously is scary. We don't know. We didn't know then, we don't know now." She taps her paw onto the brush of new fur: "But... well, we're still here. I don't... I don't dare to think this will be anything scarier."

Rebecca laughs again, sniffling, "W-well I did write those stories... I k-kinda asked for something to happen... but I didn't think... or, I just didn't think about it actually happening."

Courtney smiles, then drops down from the dragon's back to stand in front of her again. "It's not- oof- like I did either, love. But if what's happening to you is happening for the same reason as what happened to me..." She let's the thought linger.

Rebecca releases her snout to nuzzle Courtney once the kobold is in front of her again, "W-well... if it's for the same reason... then I welcome that. I guess... in that sense, I'm starting off in a better spot than you had to."

Courtney nuzzles in return: "I don't know, obviously. It's just a feeling. But... we can hope, right?"

Rebecca sets her head down leaning slightly against Courtney, her eyes still damp, "It's... it's a good feeling though."

Courtney smiles: "Mm. Guess it's then like my change... we wait and see, and make the most of it in the meantime." Her hands wander up to touch Rebecca's cheeks, as they often do.

Rebecca sighs, nudging into Courtney's hand. "I can do that... Yeah, I can do that. Not how I imagined this morning would go..." Her eye shifts back to look at her shoulder. "...is it as pretty as yours?"

Courtney lifts a paw to her chin: "Mm, your hair felt much thicker and coarser than mine, but that just makes sense." She frowns: "... Insomuch as anything about our lives makes sense anymore."

Rebecca takes a breath to try and focus, "Well... the one thing that makes sense in all of this is... us. I can't explain it, but I also don't need to. You and I... just make sense to me. The rest... we figure out when we must."

Courtney nods, touching her paw to Rebecca's forearm and looking up: "That part... Yeah. I love you." She hums, glancing at the dragon's shoulder again: "Mmm. What do you imagine are the odds you're actually changing for the exact reason I was?"

Rebecca reaches to touch the fluff on her shoulder, then brings her paw down to touch Courtney's fluff in turn, comparing the two. "I... don't know. If it is the same, why didn't it start earlier, along with your changes? But then, what else would cause this?"

Courtney shrugs, just slightly leaning into the touch: "I don't know. But it makes sense to me. Like, finally accepting - well - this, maybe that triggered something."

Rebecca raises an eyebrow, and chuckles, "Finally accepting what has happened to you? I-" She stops, considering, "I... well, you did just talk me into letting go of my guilt over it all."

Courtney looks up at the dragon with slightly lopsided smile: "Your guess is as good as mine, love. Two months ago I didn't think magic as a concept was real."

Rebecca chuckles, "That makes two of us... heh... 'magic'... is that what this is? I guess there's no other word for it."

Courtney hums: "There probably is, conjured by someone much more experienced than us. If whatever this is doesn't hurt us, we can maybe find out."

Rebecca tilts her head, growing a distant look, "You think... with this whatever it is so interwoven between us..." She looks at her shoulder, then down at Courtney, "Through us... we could... Learn about this? Do something with this?"

Courtney looks up: "Huh. I didn't think that, but..." She considers, musing. "... Was there anything in Glimmer's writings that might hint at such?"

Rebecca thinks a moment, "Nothing obvious... she never said anything about using magic or casting spells or whatever... maybe she did, but just didn't call it that? Maybe I need to look again."

Courtney shrugs. "Maybe. But I think even without this leading into anything... We gotta agree there is something pretty powerfully magical about us, about our love." She blushes ever so slightly. Why does that detail make her a bit gooey inside?

Rebecca smiles at Courtney, feeling a warmth rise up in her chest... and her shoulder itching just a bit more. "Definitely. Powerful enough to change us both... to forge some kind of bond between us... or maybe, this magic just made the bond between us something stronger?"

Courtney smirks: "Well, I certainly was more than a bit smitten before anything of this sort started happening, so there is that."

Rebecca giggles, glancing down demurely, "Y-yeah. Me too." She looks back up, then leans in to give Courtney a kiss.

Courtney giggles into the kiss as she often does. "Maybe there is something magical about this. Maybe not. But it sure feels like there is, now~."

Rebecca nods, "There definitely is. Just don't know what that means. If it means anything. It just means I love you, with all power the universe wants to put into those words."

Courtney smiles: "Yeah, and I guess we're just finding out that the universe does put as much weight to it as those cheesy romance flicks would have you understand." She blinks. "Come to think of it, no wonder we haven't seen a movie about a dragon and a human falling in love if this is what happens."

Rebecca giggles, "How would anyone else even know? Do you think we're the first dragon and human couple?"

Courtney motions aside: "Hmm, point. We might be." She considers for a moment. "...though, it depends. Exactly how discouraged would this sort of thing be, among dragons?"

Rebecca thinks, "Well, it wasn't exactly forbidden... It was more like... something so obvious that they didn't need to tell me? Though I thought it was just a business thing. Like, 'don't fall in love with your employees' kind of thing. I mean, it was just something you aren't supposed to talk about it as even a possibility."

Courtney hums, nodding: "Mmm, yeah, suppose that's also a thing." She winks. "Mistress~."

Rebecca giggles, gently nudging Courtney with her paw, "And don't you forget who's really in charge here, hm?" It's unclear who she means.

Courtney giggles in mirror: "You, of course. Unless I tell you otherwise~."

Rebecca grins, no sense of joking or irony in her voice at all, "Of course, love~. What you say goes."

Courtney smiles, leaning onto Rebecca's arm as she looks up: "I guess if we are the first couple, people have been missing out. This is pretty darn magical indeed~."

Rebecca sighs, "I mean... I know some humans might be scared... and maybe dragons will say it is some kind of taboo. But that's just not fair. This is... the best I've ever felt."

Courtney nods, smiling very warmly: "Yeah... I guess if there are other couples out there, they have kept as quiet as we have. For pretty obvious reasons."

Rebecca lowers her wing down to wrap around Courtney in a slightly leathery hug, "I guess so..."

Courtney hugs upwards as best as she is able, smiling. She is quieter now. "...I do miss being outside, I admit."

Rebecca hums, feeling a bit sad, "...it has been awhile since you've been able to leave the manor, hasn't it? We... we should find a way to let you do that. To do whatever you want again..."

Courtney sighs, leaning onto Rebecca some more: "Yeah, it's... funny what you take for granted, right? I never was one for really being out in the nature or whatever, but..." She trails off, looking aside.

Rebecca chuckles, "Y-yeah, me either. You know my habits mostly involve lounging around reading. But... Maybe I can just... introduce you to folks in town? 'Oh, this is just my kobold. She's assisting me at the manor now, so treat her like you would anyone else.' ...right?"

Courtney blinks, her heart leaping at the thought. "Oh. Um... m-maybe? When you put it like that it sounds possible, but also like... p-pretty scary?" She runs her mouth a few times: "Like... wouldn't it attract attention?"

Rebecca sets her face seriously and snorts, "Well, then, they can take that up with me! Why should it? Just... because no other dragon has a kobold... or if they do, they're not public... or..." she deflates slightly, "It's a stupid idea, isn't it?"

Courtney pauses, hesitates, considers... then smiles: "Maybe not. But not something we should rush into without some kind of plan for the inevitable questions."

Rebecca manages to smile back with a sigh, "Okay... so... something to plan for a little, then. But... it's at least something we can think about to make it so you're not... trapped here."

Courtney sighs: "I appreciate it, Rebecca. It's just... I don't know, I don't mind being here - obviously - but there is a world out there."

Rebecca does stretch her wings out a little, "There's always... taking you out for a flight?"

Courtney blinks, looking up: "Now there's a thought that scares and excites me at once."

Rebecca giggles, "That's an offer that'll always be open to you."

Courtney smiles, swallowing: "I gotta keep it in mind. But you have my curiosity."

Rebecca winks, "I won't push it. But I will remind you from time to time. I haven't gotten to fly in awhile." She flexes her wings, giving them a slow flap as she looks back at her shoulder, "Assuming these changes don't affect my wings... Oh wow... I uh, see what you mean by that uncertainty... not being sure what you're going to lose, or gain, or... or... ah, that's the worst!"

Courtney nods, touching her paw onto Rebecca's: "Yep. It's... Like, I constantly feared what next morning would bring. Now that it's been a couple of weeks, I guess I sort of feel safer that my changes are done..." She sighs, not for the first time, for her changed life and lost humanity.

Rebecca lifts one finger to cross it over Courtney's paw, holding paws, echoing Courtney's sigh as she tries not to think about it. "I... I'm sorry. No guilt, just, I'm sorry that you had to go through this."

Courtney hums, nods... then smiles up at her girlfriend. "But on the other hand... paw, I guess, it got us into this. I don't want to think it's just the change in me talking that... in some respects, I actually like this more than the life I had before."

Rebecca hums, her paw gently rubbing Courtney's. "Well... same. I haven't exactly lost anything..." She glances back at her body, "...but I would give up... a lot to stay at your side."

Courtney smiles softly at the touch: "Well, here's hoping you don't have to."

Rebecca nods, "Yeah... we'll see... but at least we'll see together, right?"

Courtney smirks, then whispers: "Regardless of the amount of fur or scales."

Rebecca giggles, "Yeah... saying it like that doesn't make it sound so bad..."

Courtney brushes her paw on Rebecca's, then nods: "We'll see where things go. So far... you have a bit of fur on your shoulders. I think I'm qualified to say that that's not all that big." Her tail swishes lazily as she talks.

Rebecca glances along the length of Courtney's tail and nods, "Guess so. You're possibly the most qualified person on the subject, love."

Courtney giggles, tail swishing some more: "Well I better have gotten something out of this deal, or else I will complain to the management."

Rebecca blinks, feigning shock, "Oh no! And I'm the management! Well, what can I do to make up for this serious breach in etiquette, hm?"

Courtney lifts a paw to her chin, then nods sagely. "Kiss me."

Rebecca closes her eyes and smiles, "That, I can do, my love." She leans in and kisses Courtney passionately.

Courtney leans into the kiss, grinning like a dork as she does. She holds the kiss until she pretty much has to push the dragon further so she can breathe.

Rebecca pulls away only slightly, smiling wide. "S-sorry my kisses are always a little messy for you..." She doesn't seem that sorry.

Courtney is giggling to show exactly how much she minds. "I-it's not like I have much in terms of clothes to mess up." True to her words, she hasn't had any clothes on her for... over a week now, not that any of her old clothes really fit her much smaller and spined, tailed, clawed frame anyway.

Rebecca lets out a very rehearsed sigh, "I know I'm the only one, but I still miss the maid dresses. When they still fit, I thought they were adorable." She eyes Courtney a moment, taking in her naked form, "Though... maybe I don't miss the dresses that much..."

Courtney hums for a second, then winks at the dragon: "I thiiiiink if we get my measurements right, we can probably order a custom dress or two, with the modifications needed, without attracting too much attention."

She looks up at Rebecca: "I wouldn't mind wearing a dress for you~."

Rebecca giggles, "Well, then what would you want me to wear for you?" She's never really considered it, beyond her jewelry she doesn't even own any clothing, but there's certainly a few other dragons who get custom tailoring done.

Courtney blinks, then steps back to look at her girlfriend properly. She then smirks a bit as she imagines the dragon in a big poofy dress. "Oh... heh. Maybe not a big dress, although I'd love to see it anyway."

Rebecca smirks, her smile only faltering for a moment, "W-well we should wait to make sure my measurements don't change too much... but... I'm open to try something like that. I've never worn a dress, though, my tastes are a bit more on the frilly side than yours though."

Courtney nods, humming: "Yeah, probably best to see where we, or you, end up..." She glances aside, considering: "Really this should worry and freak me out more, shouldn't it. Nope, just considering what you would look like in a dress."

Rebecca looks away as well, embarrassed and uncertain, "I... I know. But like you said when you were changing, if there's nothing we can do..." She tries not to cringe at those words, "W-well, we can still make the best of it? And... I would probably look pretty good in a dress... right?"

Courtney considers... then nods with a smile. "You would, at least the way I'm imagining it. Honestly we gotta look up what other dragons have done."

Rebecca turns back, "Oh, the ones who do it almost surely post online. Dragons... well... we do get a bit vain."

Courtney sticks her tongue out and pokes Rebecca on the chest: "Yeah well, we might as well use that fact for us. For our own, totally not vain pursuits."

Rebecca giggles, "H-hey! It's not vain if you're the one picking out my outfit... err... right?"

Courtney winks: "Mmm, jury might still be out. We just gotta find out to know for sure, right?" She looks up at the dragon: "Green. Definitely green."

Rebecca looks down at herself, trying to imagine what Courtney is thinking of, "Green...? I... well, I could make it work. Probably."

Courtney shrugs: "Or pink. I could see you in a big pink princess dress too."

Rebecca smiles, "See... now, that idea I like." She throws a paw up to her head dramatically, "The dragon as the beautiful princess in danger? Rescued by the kobold sorceress to whom she makes an eternal vow of love? A classic~"

Courtney prods Rebecca again: "Yeah cause I totally charmed you into this." She pauses. "Although it would be pretty neat if this change came with some badass magical powers. One can dream."

Rebecca blinks, poking Courtney back, "You absolutely did charm me... maybe not into this dress idea... but..." She stares with a wistful smiles, before she draws herself back into the conversation, "Magic... so weird. But... at this point, anything's possible."

Courtney smiles: "While we wait for that to manifest, how about breakfast? I can totally make us a completely non-magical omelette fit to feed a dragon or two."

Rebecca nods, "Breakfast is totally possible... and... thanks for coming in to help me with this." She glances at her shoulder again, but only turns back to her girlfriend with determined nod.

Courtney smirks, then with a couple of dedicated movements, jumps and climbs up Rebecca's arm, shoulder and onto her back: "To the kitchen, my love. Untold adventures of deliciousness await us!"

Rebecca chuckles, watching Rebecca's motions and feeling her familiar weight on her back. She stands up and stretches, then heads back out of the bathroom at last and onward to the promises of breakfast.

Courtney briefly ponders how the heck did she even get up there so fast, but dismisses the thought. Who really cares if she doesn't?

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