January 2021 Microfic!

Hello y'all,

Another January, another dragon story!  Only one day late too! Hope you like belly scales!

~Benn {Doomgender} Ends

Theme: Fantasy Epic

Prompt: Knight in a will they won't they fight with a dragon gets cursed to become one. Their gf finds it cute and goads them into the same lair/bed

Suggestion by: Yana Winters (Thank you so much!)

~2732 words

CW:

• Dragons
• One sided rivalry 
• Dealing with a doctor
• Polyamory 
• Transformation

~~~

“Wait, wait. Could you repeat that? Just one more time.”

The alchemist sighs, setting down his scroll.

“I know this all is a lot to take in. So, to put it simply, you’ve got a pretty nasty curse on you. I believe the cursework pattern matches up with this one here, called ‘Draconic Destination’. A very rare, very powerful magic out of the bad end tree. I’ve actually never seen it myself, usually people come in with a case of ‘Koboldification’ or ‘Fairy Fated’. So in some ways you’re quite lucky.”

“Lucky. Sure. So what exactly is going to happen to me if the curse is left unchecked?”

“Wellll, let me see. According to Menphelusia the Sincere victims tend to grow a tail next. Big chunky one probably, given your strong physique. Then, belly scales. Now these are gonna be-”

“I, meant more generally. You’re saying I’m going to. Turn into a dragon.”

“Oh yeah, definitely. Well, sort of. It’s one of those ‘during the day you’ll be cursed with the the aspect of the beast, during the night you’ll lose your humanity altogether’ type curses. Really it’s like, 90% benefits though. Dragons are immortal, very strong, the most naturally talented casters of all the species, got the flying. It’s really only a curse if losing your ‘humanity’ is the worst thing that you can imagine. Real narrow minded stuff if you ask me.”

“I don’t *want* to be a dragon though.”

“Yeah? Shame that.”

“I- You’re an alchemist.”

“That’s what it says on my scroll.”

“You’re an expert on spells and curses.”

“Sure.”

“So you must know how to remove a dragon curse.”

“Do I look like a dragon to you?”

“What is that supposed to mean?”

“Look kid, no one’s out here casting a curse that turns you into the mightiest of magical creatures but said magical creature. It wasn’t some average sorcerer with a grudge who cast this on you. It was a dragon with a grudge. And you’d need a dragon to remove it.”

You look down at your ungloved hands, at the obsidian claws that grew in over the last couple days.

“I know who did this,” you murmur.

“Really? I suppose you make some powerful enemies going around knighting and such.”

“If I defeat the one who cursed me in combat, while I be freed?”

The alchemist scratches his head.

“I really don’t know. You’re the dragon, you tell me.”

“I’m not a dragon!”

“Well now we’re just splitting hairs.”

“I. I have to go.”

“Well, good luck with the whole dragon thing. You can pay on the way out with the receptionist.”

“But. You didn’t do anything.”

“Here we go with the semantics again.”

~~~

Some time later, you step out into the sunlight. Frustrated, lighter on gold, but at the very least, you have a plan.

“She thinks she can just toy with my life huh,” you grumble. “Time for her to learn her lesson about underestimating the Royal Guard.”

When you return home, your girlfriend is in the kitchen, chopping vegetables for dinner.

“Any luck at the alchemist?”

You hang your cloak by the door, and go immediately to your armor rack.

“I know who cursed me and I’m going to make her fix it.”

Your girlfriend in the kitchen chuckles, moving on to a red pepper.

“What kind are we looking at?”

“Dragon.”

“Damn, my money was on werewolf.”

“Don’t tease me! I’m grumpy!”

“Wait so you’re going after that dragon again?”

“Yes and this time I’m going to win.”

“Just don’t hurt her okay? She’s only rough because she wants you to confess your feelings.”

“My only feeling towards her is ‘defeat’!”

“You do get defeated a lot, so that makes sense.”

“You know what I meant!!”

She hears you fiddling with your armor, and cuts you off.

“You’re not traipsing off at sunset to get owned, again. We have dinner to eat.”

“But-”

“Nope. Put that gauntlet down, and come get the silverware. You can leave in the morning.”

You sigh. There’s no arguing with her sometimes. Besides. You could use some rest. Dealing with that alchemist was more tiring than it had any right to be.

Dinner is lovely, as ever. Your girlfriend cooks for a regionally famous eatery. That’s actually where you first encountered your rival. The beast was leaving, cloaked in a human-like disguise. It turned into a duel in the street after the dragon snickered at your armor. After a heated engagement, the dragon flew off, saying “you should come over and play sometime”, a clear challenge that you couldn’t ignore. Later your girlfriend insisted such things as the dragon was “just here to try the goat” and “not hurting anyone or causing trouble” and “of course we knew she was a dragon, what do you take us for?” and “oh come on you have to be joking, she was hitting on you.”

You love her dearly, but she doesn’t always understand the complexities of your position.

The rest of the night, you actually manage to relax a little. You talk about the alchemist over dinner, and the two of you relax afterwards, falling asleep early. You insist on wearing the gloves to bed, so you don’t accidentally scratch her in the night.

The next morning, you pull yourself out of bed first, groggy in the dim of the sunrise. You don’t notice until you’re pulling up your padded under-armor britches.

“DEAR GODS!”

Your girlfriend hurries into the main room, still yawning.

“What’s- oh it is pretty chunky.”

“This isn’t funny!”

You wiggle angrily in place, and the scaly reptilian tail waggles back and fourth in concert.

“I’m sorry, I know you’re a little sensitive about this lizard stuff. I think it’s kinda cute if I’m being on the level.”

You pout.

“Cute how? It’s a monstrous appendage growing out of me!”

“Yeah, but it’s like. A cute lil tail. Look at it wiggle. Come on. You’re heart’s not made of stone.”

“You and I have different definitions of what’s ‘cute’.”

“I guess. Can I pet it?”

You grumble and blush.

“Fine. You can touch it, but only if you’ll help me get my armor fastened.”

“Oh deal, are you kidding me?”

You have to make some compromises with the armor, to accommodate the tail. And your girlfriend has to quickly trim some clothes to make a decent sized cutout. But you manage to get mostly suited up. Enough to crush an oversized reptile!

Your girlfriend has been studiously avoiding your tail this whole time, but now claps it with both hands, near where the base meets your back. The unfamiliar sensation jolts you, setting you standing straight up with a yelp.

“Oop, sorry, did that hurt?”

“N-no, it’s just. Sensitive.”

“Oh, cuuuuute.”

“B-be quiet. It’ll be gone as soon as I break the curse.”

She starts rubbing the tail vigorously.

“Guess I better enjoy it while I can huh,” she teases.

“Ahh.. S-stop that!” 

Thank the gods you managed to keep the belly scales hidden from her. No doubt, she’d insist on petting them too, stroking them gently, lovingly, scratching at them with care..

You shake the strange thoughts out of your mind.

“It’s already later that I planned to leave. I must go, before this curse progresses any further.”

She begrudgingly releases your tail.

“Fiiiiine. But hey, if you decide to keep it, you won’t see me complaining.”

~~~

You ride your horse (side saddle, and with a long cloak over the tail) as far as you can, until you reach the dense part of the forest around the dragon’s mountain lair. The forest keeps her lair hidden, safe, and she rarely ventures out. Nearby towns report that she usually only comes by to eat at a restaurant or visit an artisan, and that she’s actually great business. The poor fools don’t even know how much danger they’re in. That said, most knights wouldn’t even bother with her until she started burning villages down.

But you aren’t most knights.

You burst into the cave with a clatter, brandishing your sword and roaring a bit more dragon-ly than you intended.

“Beast! Where are you! Face me!”

There she is, same as always. A massive monster, wings and scales and claws and maw, lording over the cavern like she’s queen of the countryside, laying atop the. Um. B-biggest pile of golden treasure you’d ever seen.

Had her hoard always been that b-big?

Oh..

“Hello, little knight. Not sure to what I owe the pleasure of your visit, but-”

She tilts her head to the side curiously.

“Are you quite alright?”

“Wha- yeah, yeah I’m fine. I just, got distracted for a second.”

“Right,” she exhales with a small rush of steam.

You didn’t expect it would be this hard to focus. When the alchemist talked about the curse, it sounded like it would just be physical changes! Grr, you feel like you’re playing right into her hands! Focus. She needs to be taught a lesson.

You brandish your sword as cleanly as you can with clawed hands you haven’t gotten used to yet. The claws are poking through the gloves, just a little bit.

“Why are you acting surprised anyway? All part of your plan isn’t it? Your plan to *humiliate* and *belittle* me??”

The dragon tilts her head to the other side, idly scratching her chin with a massive claw.

“I don’t really plan to humiliate you, it’s more that you present me a bevy of opportunities that I can’t help but take advantage of.”

“You know exactly what I mean, beast! The curse. Remove it now, before I make you!”

The dragon, out of directions to inquisitively turn her head, arches her back into a comfortable stretch, causing a small avalanche of gold and treasures that you can’t hemp but stare at. Was gold always that.. Shiny?

“I’m afraid I’m not sure what curse you’re referring to. Enlighten me?”

“You- You’re the only one who could have done this to me! Don’t lie!”

“I promise you, I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Oh? Then how did I get THIS!”

You cast aside your cloak in a dramatic arc, and turn your hips so your tail is on full display. It wiggles a little from momentum.

“Oh my, that’s a chubby tail. Good for you.”

“Not good for me! You’re turning me into a dragon against my will!”

“I swear I wouldn’t do that to you. Unless you asked. The last magic I cast on you was that time I teleported you back to your house mid sword swing.”

“I destroyed a perfectly good cabinet because of you! My girlfriend was so mad!”

“Should be more careful when you swing a sword around then. Still, my point stands. I didn’t curse you. If you’ve got dragon and not salamander or gecko, you got it from another dragon.”

“Why should I believe you?”

The dragon has rolled onto her back and is gently scooping handfuls of treasure to sprinkle languidly on her belly.

“Do or don’t, that’s up to you.”

“Alright, if it’s not your doing. Will you break the curse on my behalf?”

“Hmmmm, why should I?”

“You claim that you are not an evil monster. Call it a gesture of goodwill.”

“Well, I suppose-”

“WAIT!”

Another voice rings through the cavern. Your girlfriend?

“Hello Annabelle, lovely to see you,” breathes the dragon.

“Hi Revenbast, hope you’re well.”

“Oh, you know how it goes.”

“Um, dear, I’m kind of in the middle of getting my curse broken,” you interrupt sheepishly.

“That’s just it,” she exclaims. “It’s not a curse.”

“Oh this is getting juicy,” Reven growls while flipping back over attentively.

“The alchemist-”

“I went to the alchemist after you left to get our money back- he way way overcharged you dear you have to stop taking people at their word for these things- and while I was there asked some follow up questions about your condition.”

“Hmm, I think I know where this is going,” Reven says coolly.

You’re head is on a swivel bouncing back and forth between them. Slightly lost.

“Wha- if it’s not a curse, what is it?”

“Sudden Onset Wish Fulfillment!”

“Huh?”

“Called it,” Reven sniffs.

“When a monster uses magic on you, it leaves an imprint of their magichemical makeup on you. If they do it enough, and the imprint builds up, the target can use the magic themselves, unconsciously. That’s how someone who gets mind controlled every time they fight a succubus can occasionally resist their power long enough to overcome them- they use the succubus imprint as a counterspell!”

“So.. You’re saying I could beat the dragon now because she’s used magic to beat me so often?”

Reven snorts a little bit of fire.

“Ah, not quite. Your subconscious already used the residual magic for something else.”

“It did?”

She points at you with sudden fervor.

“Ysle, you secretly want to be a dragon!”

Your face heats up so fast it might as well be glowing.

“I- you- NO! I DO NOT!!”

Reven roars with laughter.

“If you’re going to lie that badly you might as well just admit it outright.”

“I mean I did think it was a little suspect how caught up you were in chasing Reven, talking about how cool and strong and powerful she is all the time.”

“I- I’m respecting my enemies!”

Gods. Is it really possible? You’ve always had some. Complicated feelings in the pit of your stomach when it came to Reven. And, the dreams..

You blush and don’t say anything else.

“Anyway, I just came by so the two of you wouldn’t like, get into a deathmatch over the gold horde without knowing what’s going on.”

Annabelle puts her hand on your pauldron.

“You gonna be okay Ysle?”

“Yeah. I think so.”

“Listen, Ysle. I think you and I should have a real conversation. Set aside the rivals pretext.”

Your tail swishes idly, and your belly scales prickle. They want to be pet and scratched real bad, you can tell.

“Okay. You’re right.”

~~~

Three months later.

You wake up. Stretch, and yawn, your fangs clicking when you close your mouth. It’s daytime, so you’re in your humanoid form until sunset.

You disentangle yourself from Annabelle’s arms, and stand up, your tail dragging through the gold pile. Annabelle got some earplugs and bedding to make it easier to sleep on the horde. She rolls over, mumbling something about five more minutes. You delicately pluck off a gold coin that’s stuck to her cheek.

You step gingerly over to Reven, and kiss the top of her snout. She sighs happily.

“Sleep well Reven?”

“I sleep a lot better these days, Ysle. Yourself?”

“Transforming in my sleep is still a little disorienting, but I’m getting used to it.”

You gesture to Annabelle, who is steadfastly refusing to be awake.

“You okay to fly her to the eatery today? I’m supposed to help relocate a pod of slimegirls that’s been encroaching into a pond with some territorial naiads.”

“Don’t worry about her, I’ll make sure she gets up. Good luck wrestling slimegirls.”

“If it comes to wrestling I’m not getting anywhere, those devils are slippery.”

She laughs, and Annabelle grumbles, and after you’ve gotten dressed, you spread your wings and take off.

Not much has changed, in a lot of ways. You’re still a knight, your day to day is mostly the same.

But, the three of you are together now. You and Reven moved the house to the cavern, lifted it right up and carried it.

And, you never got the curse lifted, obviously.

There’s a lot of advantages to being a dragon, really. The flying, the immunity to illness, the way you don’t have to wear loud plate armor anymore. You still wear light armor, but it’s mostly for looks now.

It also just, feels right.

You still feel a little bad for hounding Reven for so long, but she insists she always found it to be a fun back and forth, and not to worry so much.

You glide low over the town, looking down at the bustle. A few people wave to you.

Well anyway.

Things are good.

And you have more pressing matters now.

Like figuring out how to convince fifty slimes to pick a different pond to float on.

~~~