Talia awoke to Eric's screaming- this time, in the hut.

Completely used to it now, Talia sat up and stretched in her bed, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"Get the fuck off of me, you damn overgrown lizard!" Erik shouted up at Illyanth, who huffed and ignored the man beneath him.

"Ill, please get off him. I need him to survive- to help me bring prosperity back to my family," Talia pleaded, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. "He's only just arrived, and he's already had a rough time of it."

The dragon infant huffed again, but obeyed Talia's command and climbed off of Erik, much to the man's relief. The creature settled down beside the bed and curled up, his large, scaly tail twitching softly as it watched Erik.

"Good boy," Talia murmured softly, scratching Illyanth behind his horns. The dragon infant let out a contented sigh, clearly enjoying the attention. She turned back to Erik, who was still lying on the straw floor, breathing heavily.

"Good morning, Erik."

"I'm going to turn your goddamn dragon into a lizard burger."

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Behind the hut, Erik held in another scream as Talia blasted his bare backside with a burst of cold water. Ashamed as he was to have to wash this way, Erik reminded himself that it was only for the moment, until he set up the water system.

"You're lucky I didn't just leave you out there to fend for yourself," Talia muttered as she handed Erik a towel. "You know what dragons can do to a man."

"I actually don't," he snapped back. "But I'm guessing they can easily kill them, right?"

"No, worse. Many female dragons often take any male creatures to be their mates, regardless of species."

Erik stopped drying himself with the towel, staring at Talia. "You're serious?"

"When am I not?"

Erik had to admit she was right, though it didn't make it less frightening. "Well, that's just great," he muttered, finishing up with the towel and pulling on his athletic shorts. "The alternative to death is a life with a dragon. At least Illyanth is a male. Thanks for the encouragement."

Talia raised an eyebrow at him. "It's not all bad. You could learn a lot from him, you know. He's smart, and he's loyal."

"Two things I'm sure I'll never need to be. What else does that overgrown lizard have for him?" Erik scowled as he pulled a dark-green active shirt over his head.

"You'll see. It's not all that bad, really. And think about it, if you have to live with him, you'll have protection from other predators."

"Ironically, he's the one predator I'm most worried about-" Erik choked on his words when he turned around, seeing Talia completely naked.

"Even so, Ill doesn't harm others unless I command him to," Talia continued, oblivious to Erik's gawking as she doused herself with water magic. "And he's actually quite gentle. You just have to get to know him."

"I'd rather not," Erik muttered, still staring at her. "I mean, it's not like I have a choice, but..."

Talia finally took note of Erik staring at her and covered herself, slightly blushing. "While I'm comfortable with showing skin, would you please not stare at me so intensely?"

"Sorry," Erik muttered, looking away. "It's just... you're very different from the women back home."

"In what way?" Talia asked, sitting down on a nearby boulder to dry off with a fire spell.

"You're a lot bigger than I thought- you're a lot more open and relaxed in situations where most women wouldn't be..." Erik trailed off, realizing how stupid that sounded. "I mean, you don't seem to mind being naked, and you're not afraid to talk to me like that. It's just not something I'm used to."

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"In my defense, you're the first man I've ever shared a room with."

Talia's words caught Erik off guard. "What? You mean you've never had a male companion before?"

"That's right," she said with a shrug. "Other than my father, mother, and Illyanth, I haven't spent much time with other men. But, I've read a lot about their habits, psychological states, and other things from books. I'm perfectly aware of how the male mind works."

"Well, you seem to have a better grasp of it than I do," Erik admitted, sitting down beside her. "You make it sound so... normal."

"Is it not?"

Erik stared at her incredulously. "You think it's normal for you to show your goods to a man you've only met a few days ago?"

"To be fair, you showed me yours first. I merely thought it was a custom in your culture where you hailed from."

Erik shut his mouth, feeling rather foolish. "You're right. I suppose I should get used to it, huh? Wait- no, this isn't something I should get used to?!"

"Well, it's not something you should feel uncomfortable about," Talia pointed out. "And if you want to know more about me, I'm more than willing to share. I'm an open book, you could say."

Talia grew nervous upon seeing the look in Erik's eyes. "Th-that wasn't an invitation to whatever you were thinking, you know! I'm very much a woman, Erik Park."

"N-no, I wasn't thinking anything!" Erik stammered, looking away.

"I just meant you can ask questions about me, and I'd answer honestly."

"Have you ever–"

"Nope." Talia immediately cut him off.

"I didn't even finish my question!"

Talia smiled wryly. "I'm kidding, Erik Park. Go ahead, ask away."

"Right... well, why are you so comfortable around me? I mean, you've barely known me for long, and yet you've shown me a lot more than I expected. Thank you for that, by the way."

"It's not that I'm comfortable with you specifically," Talia began, "but I think it's more of an adjustment thing. Being around men who aren't my family or Illyanth has always been... different. I've never really had anyone to talk to about my interests or dreams. Even with Illyanth, it's only so much he can understand. Besides, showing a little skin here and there in exchange for money isn't anything new to me."

"Makes sense- wait, you sell your body? Is that how you've been getting food?!"

"Nonsense, I beg for food like a normal person. Also, we need to hurry up, Erik Park," Talia ignored his shock. "Morthanu is a very busy person."

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After the awkwardness from the morning slipped away, Erik gathered up all of his notes and prepared to head to Morthanu's home deeper in the village. He paused when he saw Talia throwing her usual robe over what looked like literal strips of cloth over her intimate parts.

"Hey. Don't tell me you don't have any underwear." Erik quietly asked, more concerned about her lack of garments than seeing her exposed body.

"I don't," Talia replied, looking uncomfortable. "I've decided to liberate myself from the restraints of things that bind my body."

"That's an awfully sophisticated way of saying you can't afford basic underwear either."

"I-!" Talia stammered. "That's not true! I'm just... trying something different. You know, being free and all that. It's supposed to make me feel liberated."

"Dude, you know I can just make a couple sets of clothes. You want me to?"

"No, no. It's fine. You don't have to do that," Talia insisted, blushing a little. "It's just... I want to prove to myself that I can do this. That I can be free and not rely on anyone else."

"Strip and I'll conjure a handful of clothing for you for free."

Talia immediately disrobed without a second thought, standing in front of Erik in her cloth strips.

"Hey, don't just do things without an ounce of shame! Are you really that broke that you're willing to sell your body?!" Erik quickly averted his gaze.

Talia laughed, seemingly unperturbed. "It's not like that, you know? It's just... an arrangement. Besides, I'm used to it. Now, about that clothing..."

"Yeah, yeah, just put your robe back on," Erik sighed, grabbing his journal and pen. "What kind of clothing do you want?"

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After about a half-hour of sketching and conjuring, Erik ended up making outfits from his world for Talia to wear. Among them were undergarments which caused Erik some discomfort, but he wasn't complaining as Talia temporarily divided the hut using an earthen wall to change out of his sight. Erik felt that wearing heels all day must've been uncomfortable, so he conjured some comfortable shoes from his world for the both of them.

Talia was a fan of the sweatpants and t-shirt combo, so Erik sketched out a matching set of white with gold stripes for her to wear out today. He also sketched out a pair of undergarments that he insisted Talia wear, much to her confusion. But they were to her liking, so she wore them anyway.

Surprised that hair ties weren't thing either, Erik conjured a couple of them, watching as Talia pulled her long black hair into a ponytail.

"How do I look?" Talia grinned, twirling around in front of Erik. Her long black hair flowed behind her like a waterfall, the new clothes fitting her perfectly.

"Not sure about the 'Princess' part, but in my world, you definitely give off the aura of 'Beggar'," Erik dryly replied. Talia flipped him off, which made him both annoyed and a bit comforted that it was a universal sign.

"We need to go now, we've wasted too much time," Talia said as she headed out the door.

"Wha- not even a thank you for the clothes?!"