Guild House: Blake's smithy
"Oh, sweet Goddess on high! Free me from this mortal coil!" Blake groaned, laying in defeat on top of one of the anvils in his workshop. After coming home and getting that party all over with things went back to non-stop item orders and questing for the Smith-Knight. "Uuugghh!" Leaving him with little time for anything else.
"Could you stop that," Saffire muttered in her Dragon form with her head sticking out of the cave that went into Mt Nod. "Isn't this what you wanted to do, Scaleless? You talked about it non-stop on our way here."
"Huh? You actually listened to me?" Blake looked at Saffire while upside down with a surprised face. Every time he'd talk about his dream, Saffire would tell him to shut up about it.
"Kind of hard not to when you don't stop! So what?" Saffire blew some smoke out of her nose at Blake, covering him in a black haze. "Heh!"
"Ugh, shut it! You overgrown lizard!" Blake yelled at the giggling Dragon, waving the smoke out of his face as he got up. "Huh?" And walked right into Saffire's face, getting an eye full of her giant blue orbs. "Your eyes really look like sapphires is that how you got your name?"
"What kind of pickup line is that?" Saffire groaned, trying to shake Blake off her nose. "Grr! Let go!" She growled when he grabbed hold of her face.
"Not until you answer ~me~! You know? Me and you never really get any bonding time in," Blake smirked as he worked his way up to Saffire's head to sit between Saffire's horns and blue head spikes. "Huh? Are the spikes like your hair?" He rubbed one of her spikes and was surprised to find that they weren't as rigid as they looked, bending a little at his touch. "Whoa! Hey! Stop that! I am just curious!?" He held on tight when Saffire started rocking her head.
"I don't care! Now get off!" Saffire growled, twisting and turning her head until Blake was clinging to her nose. "Grrr!"
"No! Let me stay on!" Blake yelled back at her somewhat mimicking the first time they met; A brave and foolish man trying his damnest to stay on top of a raging Dragon. "Haha! This is kind of fun!" He laughed, getting up close with Saffire.
"Well, don't mind me wrecking it," Said Vasha from the landing above Blake's smithy.
"Hey, Vasha!" Blake turned to Vasha all smiles. "What's that in your hand...?" But suddenly got pale once he saw Vasha holding a small envelope. "...Please, tell me that's your letter of resignation and not a job order..." He let go of Saffire and slid down to the floor in despair. "...and you can't quit, I own you."
"I know..." Vasha groaned, waving the envelope around in the wind. "...and lucky you this isn't an item order for once. It's from that Ovis guy, says you earned it after such a good job beating his sister's guild."
"Seriously? He's being awfully nice now, isn't he? Fixing the Guild House and that party was pretty good." Blake muttered, walking to the ladder and climbed up to get the envelope from Vasha. "Then again most of that was his sister, so maybe he's worried I might turn on him?" He joked, opening the envelope which had a fancy letter inside reading;
To my loyal and respectful servant friend,
While this may seem uncharacteristic of myself, however, from my father's teachings, I know when rewards are due.
As such I have prepared a rather pleasing offer for you, Smith. A high-class hotel has recently been opened in the Advent District, called 'Silver Grand.' Being a cut above the rest, I received a day and night stay for two...regrettably...I tried my hardest to get Lady Lu to come along with me, but she declined, you see.
So, I have decided that it would be best wasted gifted to you! Take whoever you like I am sure they will enjoy themselves.
Your Friend and business partner,
Stefon Ovis
"Really? He couldn't get a date, so I have to go on one?" Blake muttered, finding two silver tickets together with the letter. "Hmm?" Part of him wanted to toss the gift away, feeling insulted from getting regifted. "Then again?" While the other part of him was glad since this gave him an excuse to get off work. "So, does my work schedule allow this?" He winked at Vasha hoping she'd let him leave. "You can come with?"
"And have you walk me around like that time in the underbelly? Yea, no." Vasha was looking more at Blake's work schedule than him, and after marking a few things down, she looked up. "But, If you want more work for another day then sure, you can."
"Ugh, you just love seeing me make dumb decisions don't you?" Blake muttered, giving the go-ahead to put aside his work for the day. "Now since you don't wanna come, who would be good...?" He trailed off and turned to Saffire, who was listening in on the whole thing.
"What?" Saffire turned away when Blake kept looking at her.
"Aww, come on? Like I said before we never get any bonding time ssssooo?" Blake held up the two tickets.
Sadly Saffire rolled her eyes at him. "Take someone who gives a damn." She brought her head back in and went off to her room.
"Hey! Get back you giant lizard!" Blake jumped down from the landing and ran into the cave. "Whoa!" He nearly went off the edge of an open cavern area after running down a tunnel. "Safe!" He stretched his arms out to keep himself from falling. "Phew! You've been busy in here..."
The cavern seemed to have been dug out by Saffire's claws with large scratches all over the place, with indents put in the walls that acted like cupboards for Saffire's human clothes, food, and a growing pile of money she collected from quests. Thankfully for Blake and Bread, she made sure not to touch the rail tracks going deeper into Mt. Nod, in fact, she helped clear out some of them making them easier to use.
"Don't just come in here!" Saffire growled at the bottom of the cavern curled up like a cat only to rise back up to face Blake. "You're being extra clingy today!"
"There's free food and a nice bed in for you?" Blake pointed out, trying to sweeten the deal even though he didn't know a thing about this Silver Grand place.
"I get free food already, and I like my cave." Saffire shot back, blowing smoke at Blake to get him to leave her alone.
"Correction, I pay for your food, and you stay in here all day and night unless it's for a quest. So? Get. Out. More!" Blake yelled at her, waving smoke out of his face. "Ugh!" And found a growling Dragon with embers behind her fangs in front of him. "Alright! Alright! I'll get out of your room!" Blake held up his hands, backing away slowly before turning around. "Guess that means I'll have to pick between, Risabeel and Baba maybe Moco even...oh wait? Maybe Gwyn might like this?" He wondered out loud, waving the tickets in the air as he walked out. "Hmm?" Then stopped to glance back at Saffire clicking her claws together.
"'Don't come to me when you need help winning him over.'" Saffire thought back to what Baba told her when the two were talking about Gwyn and Blake. "Grrahh!" Then shook her head when she pictured the two of them together going somewhere. "FINE! I'LL GO!"
"Yes!" Blake punched the air, getting his way with Saffire both now and maybe later. "Go get changed and I'll be waiting outside!" He winked before disappearing out of the cavern.
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Inner City of Gorz: Advent District
"Can I go home now?" Saffire groaned now in her human form and dressed, currently behind Blake as the two were riding Nash and was looking up at a large silver and gold castle-like building with a bright sign reading; 'Silver Grand.'
"Don't be like that, we haven't even gone inside yet," Blake muttered, getting off Nash and offered a hand to help Saffire down. "But it looks like we're not the types that would be here." He watched some of the other guests going in and out of Silver Grand, all of whom looked like nobles. "I wonder if just having these is enough?" He looked at the tickets in his hand as he went up to the entrance.
"Pfft! Who cares? If they knew what I was, they'd make some space." Saffire laughed, following behind Blake with her arms crossed.
"True but you can't do that or I'd get in trouble," Blake muttered, stepping into the hotel and was greeted by a pair of maids; one human and one Elf.
"Good day, to you, master, and to you as well, mistress." They both bowed to Blake and Saffire. "Hmm?" Then came up with confused looks on their faces. "Did you not bring any belongings?" They looked Blake and Saffire up and down, finding them without much but the clothes on their backs.
"Did you come for a meal?" The human to the right asked.
"Or for a tour?" The Elf on the left asked.
"Uh? Both and a lot more?" Blake showed them the tickets with the maids leaning in to look at them. "Huh?" Then they turned to each other, and after nodding, they stood up straight and raised their hands.
"The V.I.Ps have arrived!" They clapped their hands, and a mass of them appeared out of nowhere to swarm Blake and Saffire from all sides.
"Hey! Let go! Where are your hands going!?" Blake was kicking and screaming at the mod of maids but only got carried off by them along with Saffire.
"My clothes!" Saffire's and Blake's clothes were stripped off and tossed out of the pack to be picked up by the stranglers. "What is this!?" Then they felt something soft and smooth getting put over their naked bodies.
"~Please, wait here~" The horde of maids asked after dropping Blake and Saffire off at a small but luxurious room with a table for two that had a breakfast spread laid out for them but oddly there wasn't anything made with meat.
"What was that about?!" Blake yelled as they left them there without any more words. "And what's this!" He tugged at a long-sleeved silver silk robe with gold trim that was forcibly put on him, on the cuffs were 'S.G,' and he even had some comfy bedroom slippers. "And why are these still here!?" Finally, he found the tickets in a breast pocket.
"I don't know! Like I said, I want to go home!" Saffire snarled dressed in the same thing as Blake, but hers was smaller, with shorter sleeves and it only went down to her upper thighs. "And this thing is too tight!" She tugged at it to let her cleavage stick out. "~Mmm~This is so~good~" But despite how things were going she still found herself snacking on the food.
"Want some tea with that?" Blake offered, pouring himself a cup while smiling at Saffire, who was curled up in her seat, enjoying herself while he got an eye full of her new look.
"Is the first part of your stay here to your liking?" Out came the gentle voice of a green-eyed white-furred female cat Beastman who waltzed into the room. She wore a long-sleeved open-back blue and gold ballroom dress with 'S.G' on her cuff like the robes Blake and Saffire were wearing. "You must be the substitutes, yes?" She asked with a long puffy tail swaying behind her lazily.
"Uhm, yeah? And you are?" Blake asked for the two since Saffire was eating non-stop.
"I am Silva, owner of the Silver Grand as it were," Silva introduced herself, taking out a folding fan that had a white tiger on it. "I do hope you enjoy your stay here." She fanned herself a little as she spoke.
"We'll try, but all this was a bit much, don't you think?" Blake waved at his new clothes. "Our clothes better be fine, and I left my horse outside too."
"Your clothing has been brought to your room, and your horse has been put in our stable," Silva informed Blake as she came up to them. "And that is only a small part of what privileges V.I.Ps get at my hotel." She added, closing her fan quickly and pointed it at Blake. "By the by, your horse is...quite an oddity...yes? When some of my staff talked among themselves, he nodded to them and walked to the stable without any issues."
"Yeah, that's Nash, just don't give him carrots and he should be fine," Blake assured Silva, granted he was surprised by the fact they were willing to take care of Nash. "I was planning on having someone bring him back to my Guild Horse, but this is passable." Blake tried acting a bit like Stefon for show, sitting with a leg over the other and holding his teacup aloof. "You have a lovely place might I add."
"Thank you, for your words, although I would have liked an Ovis staying here...but having one of their guild leaders in their place is equally fruitful. We may be able to tap into guild meetings and parties...hmm?" Silva bowed to Blake as thanks while also thinking up some ways to get more business going for her. "Now then would you like to see your room?"
"Hey, what about me?" Saffire looked up from her food, picking at her teeth with one of her fingers morphed into a dagger-like claw.
"Oh, that is becau-?" Silva started to answer but paused once she saw Saffire's claw. "That's interesting magic you have there? I thought for sure that our anti-magic barrier was supposed to keep that from happening? It is for safety reasons, of course, but...?" Her eyes went sharp after that. "Have I been scammed?"
"I don't know? Did you buy one that stops polymorphing races like Dragons?" Blake asked, pointing a thumb at Saffire as he took a sip of his tea. "Oh?" And kept going once he realized what he said. "Maybe she didn't take me seriously?" He stared up at Sliva and found her with her tail puffed out to the point that it was as big as she was. "Shit!"
"Wait? You're a Dragon!?" Silva stared wide-eyed at Saffire, fanning herself endlessly.
"Yeah?" Saffire answered nonchalantly growing a horn and some scales on her head.
"Oh, my dear Goddess, on high!" Silva's legs started to give out on her, so a maid came by to get her a chair. "Ahem, when Lord Ovis told me that his replacements were almost as important as he was I did not think a Dragon would show up!" She lost a bit of her refined persona, throwing her arms at Saffire who was picking at tablescapes. "What about you!?" She turned to Blake, expecting something from him.
"Oh? I'm just your normal old smith but one who doubles as a guild leader." Blake lied a bit, keeping his status as a Smith-Knight a secret. "Is she going to be a problem? Cause, if she is, we'll leave?"
"What? No! Please stay! As long as you're okay with us using your stay here as an advertisement that is?" Silva was all for having a Dragon being one of the first guests at her hotel. "Oh! This is going to put me on the map of the city...hehe!" She giggled to herself while Blake and Saffire shared a look. "Now if you two would like I will personally take you to your room!" She offered, slapping her fan into her hand, and stood up.
"You still didn't answer me, you keep saying 'your' room when there's two of us," Saffire spoke up, getting a bit annoyed that she didn't get her answer yet.
"Oh? That's because you two are staying in the couples' suite," Silva answered with her fan covering her mouth.
"HUH!?" Blake and Saffire yelled at the same time with both of them shooting from their seats and took point on either side of Sliva. "What do you mean!?"
"Well, that's what Lord Ovis requested at first, but he said his mistress disagreed with him, sadly we had everything prepared beforehand, and changing it now would take up all your time here," Silva explained, tapping her fan to her lips and wiggled her whiskers. "We even had your robes labeled on the back as well."
"Huh?" Blake and Saffire turned their backs to each other and found 'Mr. & Mrs.' sewn into their robes, respectively, causing the two to stare at eachother for a moment before turning back to face Silva with slightly red faces.
"It is a pity. A Dragon is just too good to pass up..." Silva bit on her finger, looking at Blake and Saffire. "...please, even if you two are not together, it would be a waste of my staff's hard work." She pleaded with her hands held together as the heads of some maids poked out from around the door.
"Uh...well, I don't really mind but..." Blake trailed off, turning to Saffire thinking things over to herself.
"Fine..." Saffire nodded, surprising Blake, and brought a smile to Silva.
"Wonderful! Now follow me to your room!" Silva cheered, walking out of the room.
"Hey, are you sure about this time?" Blake asked Saffire as they followed Silva through the halls of her hotel.
"What? You kept trying to get my ass in here, and one little hiccup has you backing out? Not happening." Saffire was taking it out on Blake for all the effort he put into getting her here. "Besides..." She pressed her fingers together, looking at him with a side glance. "...bonding time? Right?"
"Uhm? Yeah? Bonding time!" Blake couldn't keep his eyes on her for long, turning away as they were going up some stairs. "Top floor?" He asked, looking at Silva's or more correctly her tail.
"Why, yes, it is! Only the best for the Ovis or in this case a friend of the Ovis," Silva answered, rounding a corner to a pair of double doors where a pair of maids were at the ready. "Enjoy." She stepped back, letting Blake and Saffire stand at the doors then nodded to the maids, allowing them to open the room to the guests of honor.
"Eh?" The first thing that hit the two was this strong sweet-smelling scent from all the incense in the room, which like the rest of the hotel was painted mostly silver and gold. It was decked out in the finest of furniture; from the comfy-looking chairs next to a blazing fireplace to the hammocks outside on the balcony to the single bed perfectly sized so that two people would have a lovely night if they cuddled up with each other complete with a large pillow reading; 'love nest'.
"Never mind, I'm leaving." Saffire turned right around at the sight of that one. "Hey!" And would've walked out if it wasn't for Blake taking her by the arm and walked into the room with her in tow.
"Nope! You had your last chance back there, and we're getting through this ~together~" Blake leaned in on her, getting a more and more pissed-off look on Saffire's face which was starting to shift and change into something Dragonic. "Hey, look at that! We can see most of the district from here!" He quickly brought her over to the balcony to stare at the colorful rooftops of the Advent District.
"I could get a better view if I flew over this place..." Saffire grumbled with puffed-out cheeks but was slightly less annoyed thanks to the view. "Huh? Is that your horse?" She pointed down at the horse stable next to the hotel where a bunch of carriages were parked.
"Nash?" Blake looked down and found Nash looking up at him while waving his tail. "Be good down there and don't start anything!"
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
Nash neighed cheerfully before going back to eating some hay.
"Well, he's enjoying himself maybe we should get to our fu-huh?" Blake turned to Saffire, but she disappeared from his side and was now relaxing on a couch near the fireplace. "Is this what you meant by bonding time? Cause if it is we could do this at home," He pointed out, coming up to sit next to her.
"Compared to whatever you had in mind, I like this more," Saffire answered, turning away from Blake. "Hmm? Yea?" She asked Silva who was holding a rolled-up scroll.
"Oh? Well, this is the schedule Lord Ovis planned out to spend his day here, I thought you could follow it through." Silva offered it to Saffire.
"He really thought this out, didn't he? Too bad Lu didn't bite." Blake came a little closer to see what they were in for as Saffire unrolled the scroll. "Hey! I'm just trying to read it!" He groaned, getting his face pushed away by the Dragon.
"Yeah! Well, I don't want to feel you breathing on me!" Saffire shot back but still held the schedule between them.
How To Spend My Day With Lady Lu
At the arrival of I, Stefon Ovis, and my mistress, Lady Lu, I would like these tasks to be handled by you until our departure:
1. Greeted by a group of your finest staff who shall disrobe us and then redress us in a matching pair of silk robes bearing your hotel's name in some way with 'Mr' and 'Mrs' sewn into the back.
2. Then we shall be taken to a private room where a breakfast spread must be prepared preferably without meat as Lady Lu does not part take in it.
3. Next, our room shall be on the topmost floor and made into a couples' suite with an overview of the district.
4. From there I wish for us to be left alone say for an hour or so with a timely lunch at a little past noon again withhold the meats.
5. Afterward, sometime at a spa would be good for us if you do not have one build it! I will pay of course.
6. Finally, after dinner, we would like to be left alone in our room until morning, and you are not to disturb us.
"Yikes! Lu dodged an arrow on this one." Blake bearly got through with reading Stefon's wishlist before Saffire handed it back to Silva. "Uh? I think we'll go along with this for the most part just add meat to all of our meals...oh? But make sure we don't get any spinach, brussels sprouts, and...avocados, right?" He turned to Saffire listing off some of the things she didn't like.
"Yeah? How do you know that?" Saffire nodded but was left both confused and creeped out by Blake's insight on her.
"Did you forget I'm the one who brings you food? Since someone doesn't like coming out of their cave...so? Sometimes I watch you eat and remember what you like and what you don't..." Blake answered, starting confidently with a jab at Saffire, but once he got done, he realized the last bit was really creepy. "Hey, do you have horse meat?" He asked, turning to Silva making the additions to Stefon's wishlist.
"Yes, we do, along with ox, bear, and something called an elephant from the northern lands, quite rare here," Silva answered and then called one of her staff over to ask them if what she listed was ready. "Good, thank you, and on your way now. We can get you all of it if you wish." She added after waving the staff away.
"Nah, just a horse, a whole one if you could, she's has a bigger mouth than you think." Blake pointed a thumb at Saffire getting growled at by her. "It's your favorite, right?"
"~Ah~mmm~!" Or it might have been her stomach, sounding like some wild animal ready to rip something apart. "Mm-Wait!? How do you know that?!" She got her head out of her stomach, suspiciously looking at Blake.
"I see how you and Gram stare at Nash," Blake answered, wagging a finger at Saffire. "Don't worry about him he'll nev-" In the middle of his sentence, a bale of hay appeared on the balcony followed by a loud snort from below. "It's just Saffire, not me, bud! I'm still on your side!" He yelled down at the horse.
"Hey! I like you, Nash! Not as food but as a friend!" Saffrie yelled down at Nash as well hoping that he believed her. "Wha?" And in response, a horseshoe got thrown up from below. "Blake?" She turned to Blake, seeing if he got anything from that.
"Hmm? It means he's fine with it, lucky you," Blake muttered, putting his hands behind his head. "Alright, getting some needed naptime in so let me know where lunch is ready."
"Huh?! Hey, wake up! You can't just leave me by myself like this!" Saffire tried shaking him awake, but after a loud and peaceful yawn, he turned around in his chair to get comfy. "You'll hurt your back like that..." She whispered, getting some of Blake's red hair out of his face which was longer and more unkempt than usual. "He is that overworked?"
"Well then, I shall be leaving you to yourselves if you require anything please contact one of the staff." Silva bowed to Saffire and the sleeping Blake before leaving them be.
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Sometime in the afternoon
"Well...that was an experience?" Blake was idly walking along with Saffire after getting done with lunch. "When I told them to get a whole horse, I didn't think they would but you eating the whole thing was more surprising."
"Heh! You're the one who said I have a big mouth, so you're welcome!" Saffire grinned with a large bone in her mouth that she was slowly grinding down to nothing. "And it's what you get for passing out on me earlier!" She jabbed an elbow to Blake's side. "But thanks anyway! I can't wait for dinner!"
"It will come, and I'm liking the do-nothing feeling around here." Blake stretched out a bit hearing cracks and pops coming from his arms and back. "Ugh! I sound like a bag of eggshells! I hope that spa thing fixes that..." He groaned despite all the sleep he got in, he still felt stiff all over.
"How does getting your back rubbed and sitting in hot water help with anything?" Saffire asked as they got closer to the spa, which still looked like it was getting built. "I can't believe that goat made these guys build this thing out of nowhere."
"People with money like that get a pass on nearly everything, I guess?" Blake shook his head at the thought then walked ahead of Saffire to get to the door first. "My lady?" He bowed as he opened it for his Dragon companion who rolled her eyes at him as she went by. "You could at least play along sometimes, you know?" He shrugged his shoulders following behind Saffire.
"This is it?" Saffire asked to the room which was full of comfy-looking furniture with a single massage bed set up in the middle, but there seemed to be a lack of staff to handle things. "Not this again." Saffire groaned finding some other dumb thing that Stefon set up. "I am not getting on that thing you he-What are you doing!?" She yelled at Blake after finding him in the middle of disrobing.
"I want a massage, and you're here, so?" Blake trailed off, grabbing a towel to wrap around his waist before he completely took off his robe. "There, all set!" He stood tall with his hands on his hips, pushing out his beefy chest, and grinned at Saffire who was facepalming. "Come on! I got you an entire horse to Dragon down! Rubbing my back and shoulders should be a good enough trade, right?" He walked over to the massage bed and sat down. "But it's your call?"
"Fine..." Saffire went along with it after a few ineffective glares sent Blake's way and came over to him. "...but no funny requests or there's going to be more than just knots in your back, understand?!" She warned with claws for hands at the moment.
"Sure, sure..." Blake nervously nodded, starting to regret it now but laid down anyway. "...not like you haven't given me anything on my back..." He muttered, letting his face rest in a small hole while his arm hung off on the sides lazily.
"What do you mean by that?" Saffire asked, grabbing some oils from a small table next to the massage bed. "Oh..." And froze when she turned back to him. "...when did?" All over Blake's back were jagged scars some big, some small, others deep and a few were sallow.
"Remember when I hopped on your back and stabbed you with Risabeel? Well, this is what I got out of you smashing me against a mountain." Blake answered, turning his head a little to look up at her.
"So? These are because of me?" Saffire slowly tranced a hand over some of the scars unknowingly giving Blake an actual massage while she was at it. "Sorry." She whispered, getting more into it.
"Meh? Some dumb guy jumped on a raging Dragon's back what else could happen?" Blake shrugged and moved a little to help Saffire get at some of his more sore spots. "Those are because of a Demon that came after Risabeel." He pointed at a set of closed-up wounds that were left by the tailed Hellspawn back in Fairmaw. "This one's even further back thanks to Gwyn, heh, hurt like hell." He pointed to another scar and kept going from there.
"But you haven't been getting new ones, right?" Saffire spoke up after she caught on to the fact that all of the scars on Blake's back were there before he started using her.
"Well, of course, I've got some pretty sweet armor now! Although it gets a little hot under the collar, it still keeps me ~nice and safe ~" Blake sang the last part out a bit pained since Saffire dug her fingers into him when he started joking. "Thanks for that. You know for coming along, fighting with me and all that." He turned around to Saffire, finding her smirking at him. "Someone's happy?"
"Tsk! You're just showing me the respect I deserve that's all, hehe!" Saffire held her head high in a toothy grin from the small amount of praise Blake gave her but ever so slowly she came down from her high horse, making circles in Blake's back with a finger. "Same here, thanks for having me..."
"Excuse me, but the bathwater is ready for you two." A maid popped in to inform them.
"Great! A hot bath after a nice back rub sounds nice!" Blake gave them a thumbs-up and went back to enjoying himself.
"It's what I think it is?" Saffire asked, getting the feeling that she should walk out right now.
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Indoor the bathhouse after Blake's massage
"~Ah~ This is nice~" Blake wearing a blindfold sunk deeper into the warm waters of a large bathtub set up in a small room attached to the spa.
Sitting back to back with him was a red-faced Saffire holding her legs in while taking back glances at Blake to make sure he wasn't trying anything on her. "How did it get like this?"
"Cause the hot water would get used up if we did it one by one," Blake answered, looking up at the ceiling too afraid and unsure to look at Saffire even with his eyes covered. "Huh? Your back's not as soft as I thought?" He blurted out randomly as he rested the back of his head on Saffire's shoulder. "Your shoulders too, they're firm and strong just like you are..."
"Do you ever stop?" Saffire grumbled, sinking a bit deeper into the water and grew some scales on her back and shoulders, trying to get Blake off.
"Nope, ugh, that's really hard when there's a girl, uh, I like around," Blake answered, shifting around a bit to find a not-so-scaly part of Saffire's back. "If you don't like being back to back then face to face might work, right?" He whispered into her ear after finding it while moving around.
"AH!" Only to make Saffire shoot over to the edge of the tub. "OW!" And banged her side on it while Blake fell into the water to flail around. "Haha! That's what you g-!" She laughed at first until a hand grabbed one of her breasts as Blake came back up. "Hey!" Moving the two around so that they faced each other.
"Huh? Did you bring a toy in here?" Blake asked, giving whatever he was holding a tight squeeze. "Wait? This is...?" He pulled his blindfold off to find a naked but enraged Saffire looking at him with a fire in her eyes and mouth which raised the heat of their bath. "...I'll just put this back on and let go." He slowly pulled the blindfold back down, let go of Saffire then sunk back down into the now boiling water.
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Blake and Saffire's room after dinner
"You didn't have to hit me that hard." Blake groaned with a bright red clawprint on the side of his face while kneeling on the floor. "And can I stop yet?" He begged, holding a spoonful of bread pudding that wasn't going to his mouth.
"Shut up and keep feeding me!" Saffire ordered, laying on the couch while having Blake serve her the entire dessert menu. "~Mmm~so~good!" She hummed like she did with the past ten or so spoons. "This is bonding time, right?" She asked, licking her lips with crumbs left on her face.
"You sure are a messy eater..." Blake muttered, reaching up with a thumb to wipe Saffire's face making her tense up at his touch. "...I mean really messy..." His eyes went to her robe covered in leftover crumbs, jam, cream, and sauce, most of which was kept around her chest. "...and it all goes to some nice places?" He nodded after going from her chest to her hip and thighs.
"Well! I am a growing Dragon, that's all!" Saffire puffed out her cheeks with her arms around her chest, pushing it up for Blake's eyes to gloss over.
"Yeah...growing..." Blake nodded along with the bouncing of Saffire's chest, licking the thumb he used to wipe Saffire's face without much thought. "...what? Did I take too long of a break?" He asked when his Dragon mistress stared at him for a while.
"N-no! I just noticed that your hair's getting longer!" Saffire adverted her eyes and changed the topic before Blake caught on to her gaze.
"Hmm? Yea, you're right? I should do something about it? Baba likes playing with it way too much." Blake pulled at one of his bangs and twisted it around his finger. "Hmm?" Then watched Saffire go over to a desk with a mirror and held the chair in front of it. "What's she up to?"
"Want me to...cut it?" Saffire offered, tapping on the chair a few times.
"You can cut hair?" Blake got up and walked over to Saffire but didn't sit down yet and waited for her to answer. "I mean I get that you have hair right now, but you don't have any as a Dragon and you guys just kind of change forms so...I'm a little confused here?"
"Well...this doesn't just happen by mistake you know?" Saffire pulled at her blue hair flowing down her back. "...I never got how to stop my hair from growing when I'm human, so I learned to cut it...I do Risabeel's and Mari's sometimes." She explained, holding up her hands, which turned into claws. "So...want a trim?" She offered again, snipping her claws like scissors.
"Well, if Mari and Risabeel do then I guess it's fine..." Blake sat down with a bed cover pulled over him, then tied around his neck. "...I hope this isn't an excuse for you to run your fingers through my hair, you perv." He joked, leaning back as Saffire got started.
"Shut it, or you go bald..." Saffire warned, holding a hand full of Blake's hair and made the smith's face turn blue as he pictured himself looking like Reiner. "...got anything in mind?"
"For what? A new 'do' or what we're gonna be doing on that bed toni-Ngggh!? Joking! Joking!" Blake cried, having his head pulled back for Saffire to glare at him. "Is that my hair!?" He got the hint of something burning, and smoke was starting to rise up from his head. "Just get it to look like when I met you okay!"
"Easy," Saffire answered in a deadpan, getting back to work with none of Blake's unwanted flirting around to mess with her.
Many snips later
"Done!" Saffire cheered, pulling the bed cover off Blake.
"Hey, not bad!" Blake stood up to check out his new haircut well it was mostly the same as always, but there was a kind of feel to it that he couldn't put a finger on and it wasn't getting in his eyes now, so that was good. "Got some magic fingers there!" He smirked, watching Saffire sweep up his hair. "Anything I can do for you?" He offered, doing a playful bow.
"Anything you have in that head of yours is gonna get you burnt." Saffire declined, blowing some fire Blake's way then stretched herself out a little. "Sides, I'm tired..." She stared at the bed along with Blake, both of them having the same things running through their head. "Hey!" She snapped at Blake, going up to it first.
"What? You want me to sleep on the floor without a pillow?" Blake asked, taking the large love nest pillow and dropped it at the foot of the bed. "I'll be your loyal guard, my lady! So sleep well!" He bashed a fist to his chest as he sat down on the floor.
"But wasn't your back hurting you before?" Saffire asked, remembering all the scars on Blake's back as she came over to him and sat down on the floor too. "So, maybe I should take the floor." She took the pillow from him and held it to her chest.
"Heh, look at you being nice but thanks to those magic fingers for yours I feel great!" Blake rolled his shoulders around to emphasize the great job Saffire did on him. "I could sleep on a cave floor right now! Which you do all the time. So, tonight you get something soft to sleep on!" He patted the bed a few times then reached for the pillow. "Hey, let go?" But the Dragon didn't drop it.
"But I like my cave! And I made you feed me all those sweets! So this is my sorry!" Saffire moved a little bit away from Blake with him following after her. "Stop following me!" Which soon turned into them crawling on the floor in a little chase. "I'm trying to be nice!" She yelled at him after they made their way to the fireplace.
"Well, so am I!" Blake yelled back at her, finally getting her to stop by holding her arms down and pinned her down with the pillow being the only thing keeping them apart. "Geez, you're even more of a handful than Baba was?"
"Why are you bringing her up now?" Saffire asked with a blank face looking up at Blake.
"Shit, I broke the rule about not bringing up other girls!" Blake cursed himself for letting that slip but had no choice but to continue on since Saffire had grabbed his legs with hers to keep him there. "You know? She's all touchy-feely with me and stuff." He blushed, remembering both the good and the erotic parts of his date with Baba.
"Touchy-feely, huh..?" Saffire muttered, going silent, and to Blake's surprise grew her tail out to wrap it around the smith's waist to pull them a bit closer.
"Saffire..." Blake slowly let go of her at that point and kept his hand on either side of her head.
"Like this?" Saffire asked, now looking at the fire going on next to them. "...Or this?" Then wrapped her arms around Blake's neck. "...cause I can be like that too...if you want?" She offered, turning back to him.
Now it was Blake's turn to be quiet; however, that was to protect himself as in his mind he was...pretty much the same not even his perverted side wanted to pop out and mess things up for him. "She's okay with being this close...but what now!?" He racked his brain for any way to go forward that wouldn't take them back to squad one or worse; lead into something that gets this hotel burnt down. "Fine, since you're being such a handful." He finally made his move when Saffire's hold on him got tighter as he got the pillow out of the way. "Guess we'll have to share the floor!" He smirked, rolling over to lie down with the pillow under his head and Saffire on top of him.
"Wait? What!? Huh!?" Saffire got taken out of whatever mindset she was in and struggled against Blake as he was trying to keep her there. "Ragggh!" But gave up after a while, well, she would've tried harder or transformed a little if it wasn't for Blake smiling at her. "Well, someone's happy, aren't they?" She asked, resting herself on top of Blake's chest.
"Careful you might make someone else hap-ngh!" Blake's dirty joke was met with a scaled knee pressed hard against his crotch. "Okay...okay...we're only snuggling nothing more!" He promised, fighting back the pain. "But I mean this is nice, right? For both of us? I get a big-chested Dragon girl on top of me, and you get a handsome pile of treasure to lay on!"
"You're not shiny or worth a lot," Saffire muttered, rolling her eyes at Blake but that didn't stop her from looking at him with half-lid eyes.
"Aww! That hurts my heart!" Blake faked a whimper as he let his hands explore she's body with the Dragon allowing him to, even arching her back for him a bit as he got lower and lower. "I mean I'm not made of gold or diamonds but being a Smith-Knight counts for something right? I mean how many Dragons get to say they spent a night with a Smtih-Knight, huh?"
"I guess that's something...only I have..." Saffire didn't quite agree with him; instead, she was enjoying the closeness between them even as Blake roamed her body soon leaving her back for her legs and tail softly caressing her rear never went any further than that. "You're being timid for once aren't you?"
"Sometimes you have to enjoy the good things in life..." Blake answered then sat up suddenly, getting cute 'eep!' out of Saffire with their faces inches away from each other. "...and sometimes you save them for later..." He went in to kiss Saffire on her forehead. "...night." Then laid back down and closed his eyes, putting an end to their night.
And left Saffire holding a hand to her forehead completely red but this time it wasn't her scales doing it. "That's not fair." She whispered, looking down at Blake's calm face, unsure if he was sleeping or not. "Night..." But it didn't matter to her at the moment as she leaned down to plant a kiss of her own on his forehead and fell asleep on top of him.
"Thank you, Goddess, on high!" Blake with his eyes closed but still wide awake cheered, wrapping an arm around Saffire before drifting off himself.
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The next morning
"Hmm~mmm~ahhh!" Blake tossed and turned in his sleep before opening his eyes to find a head of green on top of him. "Baba?" He sat up quickly and then looked left, and right. "I'm still here?" Sure enough, he was still in his and Saffire's room. But when he looked down instead of a busty Dragon woman, there was a petite wind spirit sleeping in his lap. "I must be dreaming." He rubbed his eyes hard, but that didn't help. "Or not?"
"Mmm?" All of Blake's moving woke Baba up. "Hello, Hubby, I missed you." She rubbed her eyes a little, then rested her head on Blake's chest.
"Me too? But why are you here?" Blake asked, too sleepy to get her to move and wasn't sure if he was dreaming or not.
"Well, when Mama heard you and Hot-head were going to spend a night here, she got very lonely, so the first thing she did this morning was come over to pick you up." Baba mused, kissing Blake on the cheek. "But when I found you up here asleep with that Dragon nowhere around I took a little nap on you, sorry..." She made a few circles on Blake's chest, wanting nothing more than to go back to how they were before. "...And it looks like you and Saffire had some fun, eh?"
"What do you mean, Baba?" Blake nervously asked, knowing for sure things didn't go that far, but the sly smile on Baba's face made him sweat a little. "Did she do stuff to me while I was out?"
"I mean, look at the place?" Baba turned her head to the room notably at the empty dessert plates, a bedcover off to the side, and the fact that Blake with his robe in a mess was found laying on the floor asleep, didn't make for the best of sights. "And it looks like you freshened up for it too?" She ran a hand through Blake's now-cut hair. "I liked it long."
"Uhm? I can explain all of that and whatever you think happened didn't!" Blake quickly tried to fix any misunderstandings that Baba might already have in her head. "Ugh! Baba, too close!" But soon he was getting rubbed up on by Baba.
"If you two didn't do anything then I still have my chance maybe I should take it now?" Baba believed Blake but it didn't stop her from pulling at his robe, opening it up for her to get at his bare chest. "I bet she teased you all night long? That's very bad, you know? You shouldn't be so pent-up at your age? ~Let Mama help you~"
"Baba! Please stop before Saffire gets back!" Blake held her down with the Ala playfully going along with it even as Blake looked as serious as ever.
*Click*
"Hey, Scaleless, I've got food for you." Which was all replaced by a look of sheer terror as coming back into the room was Saffire in her regular clothes and a breakfast tray for Blake in hand. "..." And she stood there looking at them.
"Morning?" Blake greeted her in only a whisper as he was currently on top of Baba, holding her arms down, and half of his robe was already peeled off. "Now, Saffire it's not what it looks like, right, Baba?"
Baba smirked, giving Blake some hope that she would save him. "It looks like you couldn't give him what he wanted last night, so he forced himself on me..." Which she cut down like a sword slashing into a lump of meat. "...but, I don't mind, I'm willing to do anything for my man!" She wrapped her arms around Blake's neck a pulled him down further kissing him on his forehead.
Which was all it took to set Saffire off...
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An article from the weekly Gorz newsletter
Up in smoke!
On the top floor of the Silver Grand hotel, during its opening week, a freak firestorm occurred destroying the V.I.P suite reversed for a member of House Ovis who was not at the hotel at the time.
'It was as if a Dragon had let its rage be known to the world!' Quoted one eyewitness to the event.
When questioned on the cause of the fire the owner of Silver Grand, Miss Silva had this to say;
'This was an accident caused by one of my staff's negligence when doing maintenance on one of our fireplaces in preparation for our guest of honor, a member of House Ovis, who I can not disclose at this time. All is well, and there was no loss of life, House Ovis is paying the damages. Who find themselves responsible for the stress they placed on my people.'
She also added that a smith by the name of Blake was to be banned from entering the Silver Grand for reasons unknown.
Chapter End