Chapter One:

From the Account of Kozu-Utā

There is no end to their dragon toenail fetish. This world's inhabitants, as far as I know, are pretty superstitious. And despite originally being off-worlders the members of my guild are no different. Everyday they ask for more and more. When it comes to options for good luck charms there are many. So, why is it always toenails they want? I tried introducing other, safer to gather, good luck charms to them but it was no use. The requests kept coming.

 I felt like I'm losing my mind. Stalking the dragons time after time hoping they don't notice me. It would have still been a difficult but simple enough endeavor if dragons were merely formidable beasts. But, calling them beasts is either an insult or compliment depending on context. The people whom humans refer to as Dragons are born with tremendous magical power that enables them to transform into massive lizards big as airplanes or even larger. Their innate magical ability also allows them to manipulate and enhance their physical forms and even use destructive elemental force while in lizard form but that is the extent of their magic and that’s quite enough!

I've been on this world a long time but it’s still unclear if the aggression between dragons and humans was started by the dragons who can easily overpower humans in every way or by humans who are afraid of the dragons’ physical transformations. My money is on humans. If dragons wanted to subjugate humans they would have done so a long time ago but they haven’t even though humans by and large still indiscriminately attack them.

God help those whose recessive genes reveal them to be a descendant of dragons. The way they are treated, even by their parents… To state it mildly they are usually the ones who the stories of rampaging dragons are about. But no one ever asks why. I don't believe in revenge. An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind. But, I do believe that people reap what they sew.

 

What was I sewing for myself entering uninvited into the homes of full-blooded dragons all for the sake of stealing their toenail clippings? I don't care how much they are worth or what crazy items can be made from siphoning the magic power from their body parts. Yet, there I was hiding in a particular dragon’s closet night after night. There seemed to be no end to their toenails. It wasn't normal but I did not question it. I just kept going back. Every night I would watch him take off his shoes and socks and wait for the district click click of the clippers. When I was certain he was asleep I stealthily scurried out and collected the clippings. Having noted where each one had fallen on the wooden floor it didn't take long to pick them up. 

On one occasion I was very unfortunate. The usually silent floor creaked, freezing me in place for at least fifteen seconds. The dragon stirred in his sleep pushing the plush blanket from over his head and turning onto his back. My heart was in my ears. Had I awakened him? The floor creaked again as I shakily inched toward the door. Panicked and not caring if the floor creaked with each step I took, I tore out of there. 

Having convinced myself the dragon hadn't seen me I went back the next night. As usual I waited in his closet. I should have known something was off when the dragon entered his room holding a small plate. He placed the dish on the stand beside his bed. I bit my tongue to keep myself from screaming when he removed the hooded robe he had on. Was the dragon going to change into a different set of clothing before going to sleep this time? I was afraid that'd be the last night of my would-be long life. Thankfully the dragon placed the robe elsewhere in the room then began clipping his toenails as usual. Once he was finished the dragon put out his lamp and went to bed, leaving whatever was on the plate untouched. A midnight snack maybe? I was too afraid to look over at it. Although we were all of the same species the notion of race was so strongly believed in that it wasn't uncommon for people to use each other's body parts as tools and even food. I didn't want to look over onto that plate and see anything that looked too similar to my own flesh. I can only say it smelled like sweet potato pie. 

It was the second night since creak-gate and I felt almost certain the dragon had seen me because he seemed to be deliberately and methodically removing his robe and to my horror the tunic he was wearing underneath it as well. I thought for sure he would come over to the closet for a change of clothing. Instead he sat down as usual and clipped his toenails leaving another sugary smelling dish untouched. That time it smelled like carrot cake with cream cheese frosting. Curiosity got the better of me. I steeled myself to look only slightly prepared for the possibility I was wrong about it being a dessert. Thankfully it also looked like carrot cake. I wanted to taste it so badly. But, if I had he definitely would have known someone was sneaking into his home. Besides for all I knew the pans were lined with lard made from human fat. It doesn't matter that I'm technically not human anymore, I was once. And regardless of classification, eating other people is where I draw the line. 

On the third night after creak-fest everything came off, almost. Was he going to open his closet for a change of clothing or was his late night snacking so sloppy he had to take off all of his clothes? This is a person who just leaves his toenails on the floor and goes to sleep I'm talking about, but his place is near spotless overall. Then again he does stuff like leave his toenails on the floor messing up the near perfect image I had of his house keeping skills.

A lot can be told about a person's hygiene and environment by their clothing. As one who had spent an ample amount of time in this particular dragon’s closet I can say for sure whatever he does for money it isn't hard labor. His clothes are too clean. He also bathes and washes his clothes quite often. Clothes that smell mildly of cologne and/or b.o. means one of two things, possibly both. The person they belong to doesn't wash them frequently enough. The person they belong to doesn't wash their body frequently enough. His clothes smell like fragrant soap or fabric softener; familiar secrets from an old life that I missed. The smell put me at relative ease while I sat there waiting for the dragon to fall asleep. Thinking about it now that was probably why I returned to that same house despite the increasing danger of being discovered. A lot about Dragon homes remind me of Earth. Spending so much time in that particular house had sent my nostalgia through the roof.

As the dragon disrobed I wanted to close my eyes, give him some privacy. I wanted to guard his dignity when I thought I had no reason to believe he knew I was there, but such thinking could've cost me my life. So, I carefully watched his every move. Even when he pulled the form fitting pants he was wearing down, nearly completely taking his underwear off with them. Dear God, I wasn't prepared to see dragon balls that night. From the look on his face it seemed he wasn't prepared to show them. It was only for a brief moment but I could have swore his tawny complexion turned a rosey crimson. And that his sharp dark amber eyes were looking over in my direction.

 

 The dragon nonchalantly pulled his underwear back up, sat on his bed, and went about the nightly routine of clipping his toenails. To my dismay he didn't let them drop to the floor. I was caught between feeling indignant, angry, terrified, and panicked. Should I have dashed out of the closet and returned empty handed, assuming the dragon wouldn't have taken my head clean off. Or should I have waited until it seemed like he was asleep as usual and take tonight's wardrobe malfunction as the last time he'd let me leave alive. I mentally sighed with relief when he placed what I could only assume were his toenail clippings on the stand next to the plate on his night stand. Another dessert. I could smell it all the way from my position on the floor of his closet. Gingerbread or something like it.

Once I heard the tell-tell soft snoring of sleep I snuck out of the closet. Having memorized the location of the creaky floorboards I stealthily made my way toward the night stand. I reached out to grab the clippings and my hand halted, my fingers less than an inch from touching the clippings. The dragon had grabbed my wrist. The rest of my body froze in terror. I thought that was it. That I would die right there. The dragon said something but I could not comprehend his words through my horror. If I could I might have realized he was speaking Elvish.

The next thing I knew I was waking up in a strange bed. Completely disoriented, I didn't know where I was. Then it hit me. I had to get out of there. But, I couldn't move. The dragon was holding me down. My entire body was tightly bound. When I started to cry out his hand covered my mouth.

“Shh… Shh…,” he said, stroking the top of my head. What he said afterwards I don't know because I could only focus on his long black claws. Tears were streaming down my face. I trembled feeling them pass over the skin under my eyes. What kind of torture was this? I could see his diamond hard and just as sharp claws without them being shoved in my face. And I still can't get over this; he had me in a swaddle! A swaddle! I wished he'd just kill me and get it over with. But that wasn't what I truly wanted– I wanted such a humiliating encounter to have never happened.

 “Please, don't eat me.” 

My plea was met with laughter. “Alright, if I promise not to eat you will you promise not to run off?”

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Was he screwing with me? Where was I gonna go trapped in a freaking swaddle? I couldn't even sit up! I nodded my head. Even if I tried to run for it he'd be on me in an instant.

 The moment he undid the swaddle I sat up and instantly felt dazed. 

“Here, drink this. It's tea,” the dragon added, noticing my hesitation. But, I still refused. “If I were going to devour you, why would I poison you?” Sighing he took a sip from the cup then held it out to me again. 

I took the cup and thirstily slurped down its contents. It was disgusting. Tea? It tasted more like medicine. 

“It's a tea used to treat dizziness.”

I said the Elvish word for medicine. 

“Ah! That's right. It is,” the dragon replied. “How are you feeling?”

Somewhat calmed and no longer dizzy after drinking the extremely bitter medicine I could hear the jovial lit to his deep, almost thunderous, voice. Still scared stiff I couldn't appreciate it at the time. “F-fine,” I stammered. 

“Liar.” He sat down on the bed across from me with his legs folded in front of him.

I stared at him taking in every detail I could. His long black hair spilled around his near naked frame. A tattoo spanning his right shoulder, back and chest was made up of Dragonian characters and abstract art. His physique would have been impressive if he were a human. While they must train religiously to get that kind of muscle and tone he as a dragon has it naturally. This went doubly for us Elves. Elven men have more slight physiques compared to humans despite being two times as strong as one of their body builders. The muscle is there but hidden and would take a lot to force out into being on display like the dragon's before me. We elves are indeed physically stronger than the average human, but considerably weaker than the weakest of dragons. I was both unduly impressed and uncomfortable.

 

Only warriors went through the effort to build up their bodies; men who tended to kill and pillage their own people. I couldn't help making the association even though I knew better. A chill came over me. And despite my fear I addressed him.

"Could you please put some clothes on?" The words came out of my mouth but I felt like I was outside of my body.

For a moment the dragon seemed confused. Then he stared at me. Then down at his crotch, then back at me. "Oh," he exclaimed then threw on a dark red robe trimmed in black. It was tied loosely with a thin sash of the same design and color. Not being worn in the usually well put together fashion, as soon as the dragon sat back down the top of it spilled open down past his navel. Sitting with his legs folded in front of him the ankle length robe fell to his sides leaving his thighs completely exposed. The two long ends of the sash that were tied in the front nearly covered the area between his legs. Although he had on pants they were very short, thin, and made out of a very clingy material that reminded me of stockings. I wanted to face palm as it became clear his parts were what he thought I was bothered by.

“Is this better,” the dragon asked earnestly.

 I nodded. I was still afraid he'd dismember me and eat me on the spot.

“Alright then, elfling. Care to explain why you've been sneaking into my house for the past month and a half?”

Had it really been that long already? I didn't answer him. We both knew what I was there for.

 The dragon yawned. “I’m not asking what you're taking, l'm asking why?” Suddenly his face was so close our noses touched. I yelped. 

Leaping from the bed I took off for the door. Then all of a sudden I couldn't move. I was face down on the floor with a clawed hand over my mouth. The dragon said something but what, I don't know. I tried to move my body in vain. Being in the dragon's grip was like being held by granite. When he sat up I could move my legs but to no effect. He scooted over to the bedroom door and closed it with his shoulder. This was it, I thought, I was going to die. The dragon was probably going to eat me alive in that very spot. I screamed bloody murder behind his hand. My life was going to come to an end over some toenails of all things.

"Shhh. There there. There there," the dragon said in a soothing tone softly patting my head. How long had they been doing that? It felt like we had been sitting there for ages. I stopped struggling and the dragon let me go. I turned to face them and was promptly handed a handkerchief.

"Thanks," I said, cleaning my face.

"I don't mind. But, why are you suddenly okay with touching me?"

Realizing I was sitting in his lap I promptly got off. "If you thought I had a problem with touching you, why did you grab me?"

The dragon leaned forward. "For starters I'm still wondering what an elfling wanted with my toenails. And second you seemed so freaked that I asked, you nearly ran out the front door in the middle of the day. I don't feel like being questioned by the neighborhood watch why a random elf is running out of my house. But, if you were my pet no one would have anything to say to me about it." He sighed.

I was indignant. "Your pet," I said glaring at him then remembered the situation I was in and what he had just said to me. I could come and go as I pleased right through the front door. That meant he wasn't interested in eating me, at least not for the time being. I quickly pivoted. "So, I could come and go as I want and it wouldn't be an issue?"

"That's right but you're forgetting one thing."

"What?"

"The question you have been avoiding giving an answer to."

My face grew hot. I couldn't say it was for my guild. What if saying so resulted in them and our house being turned into barbecue? Even if that wasn't the case it was too embarrassing. But, if I wanted to get out of there I had to tell him at least a good part of the truth. "For good luck charms."

"For what?" The dragon stared at me in disbelief.

"Good luck charms," I said louder.

The dragon erupted into bubbly laughter slapping the floor. "My sides hurt," he said after a while. 

"Don't laugh too hard," I said, dejected. My elven pride was in shambles. 

"I'm sorry. To admit such a thing to me must have been terribly embarrassing for you. Is that why you freaked out?"

I hesitated to answer. "No, it was your nose."

The dragon quickly puts hand over his nose. "My nose?"

"Your nose touched my face." Why did it feel so awkward to point that out?

His hand quickly came down from his face and the dragon turned his back to me as he properly tied his robe shut. "I suppose I must seen like a real freak to you. But, I promise that's not why I stopped you from leaving. I was telling the truth it really would cause problems, more so for you than me."

"Like?"

"Well, for starters you would be jailed and interrogated without sleep."

     "Then they would eat me?"

     "Eat you?"

     I could tell from his tone that must have been an absurd notion to him. I looked away shame faced. 

The dragon put his hand to his chin thoughtfully. "I suppose there are some who might. Even if they didn't I can't promise you'll leave here alive or dead," he added nonchalantly.

"What," I nearly shrieked.

"Then it's not even a question."

"What isn't?"

The dragon went over to his drawer and rummaged through it. Retrieving a black collar. He walked back over to me and clipped it around my neck. I felt magic disperse from it into my body. 

"What the hell?!" I grabbed my neck and tried to pull the thing off. 

The dragon took the blanket from his bed that he had swaddled me in and draped it over my head. "Shh."

I wanted to slap him. "I'm sick of you shushing me! Take this thing off of me right now!"

He pulled me closer. "There's no way around it. You'll have to be my pet, little elfling," He said with a serious tone that conflicted with the contented expression on his face. 

~*~

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