*I do not own Jane and the Dragon or its characters

I just love odd pairings. Jane and her Dragon, can that work? They do seem to have the best relationship no matter how different they may be. This story might be weird, or maybe not if your used to this sort of thing but I hope you like it!

The urge to interrupt him before he had finished was overwhelming, and the urge to tease her was extraordinary. "I bet you will be late"

"I bet you are wrong"

"We will see"

It was of no consequence when they were to leave, but Jane climbed on dragons back, determined to get everything done on time. Patrol was peaceful as usual and Jane was ready to head back, that is until Dragon took a nosedive for the cows. Grazing cows do not mind another human on their land, but the hard to miss Dragon they might. Their stoic faces stuck in a corpulent state of mind broke at the sight of Jane falling head first onto a pile of hay, her hair in a mess with straw. The disruption started a stampede, and they would have got to Jane if Dragon had not scooped her up in time.

When all the chaos was over, Jane received a brief scolding from the farmer, reminding her that it was not the first time such things had happened. In Dragon's opinion, short lives had a short lived sense of humor as well.

After giving her reassurance as well a apologies, Jane returned to her oversized lizard, clearly not the happiest. "I thought I told you to behave?"

Giving her a toothy smirk, he replied. "No Jane, I believe you said not to scare the farmer, you never mentioned the cows"

"You started a stampede!"

"I startled them which in turn started the stampede"

"Do you think this is funny?"

Her scrunched up face was really humorous, at least to Dragon. Her voice also had a slight change of tone, nothing hurtful, though it was adorable. Are you kidding? It was hilarious, you should have seen your face when..."

Attacking his tickle spot right under his neck, her anger dissolved with every burst of his laughter. Jane was good, she knew where his tickle spot was and he tried to pry her off, but he was powerless with every little dance of her fingers over the same ticklish spot. "Jane! Jane! Please no, that tickles"

"This is funny too"

"No...haha... Stop that!"

He tried to grab her but she was fast and agile. "Only if you promise to be good"

"Ha! Ha! Alright, I will!"

Jane really knew what to do is she wanted results. It was mid-morning, and it had not been long since they finished patrol or the whole farmer scaring and scolding, and Jane had to get back to the castle if she wanted to prove Gunther wrong. Dragon on the other hand was not ready to leave yet. All he really wanted to do was roll around and watch the cows while teasing Jane. Laying on his back, he looked at her, still getting over the affects being tickled. To Jane he was like an overgrown puppy, full of energy and always playful. "You can be really adorable when you try"

He seemed almost insulted by her comment. Passing his hand over his non-existent hair, he growled, followed by his personal opinion. "You mean tall, dark, and handsome"

The comment itself induced in Jane the familiar rolling of the eyes which normally followed his other similar comments. "Oh really? Well sir tall, dark, and handsome, are we leaving?"

Pawing the air, he whined. "Not yet, come on, come back and give me a belly scratch"

"I think not, we really should get going. I will not have Gunther get the better of me this time"

As many might not be aware, Dragon was a strong believer that when you offer services you should be paid back more generously and continually or it was not worth his time. "Forget about him. You owe me for taking me away from my cows"

"They are not your cows"

"Everything on this side if the valley is technically mine, I was here first. Please?"

Though his reasoning was not always applicable or of great importance, it was hard to resist when Dragon gave her the look.

"Oh, alright" She finally acquiesced

Dragon felt contented by the simple things in life such as belly scratches, heads of cabbage, and the sound of moo. The sun burnt brilliantly, warming up his every scale, and there she was right there straddled over him. If a similar set of circumstances were to befall on anyone but Dragon, then of course they would have deserved a roasting, for Jane was unofficially his short life. No, if he were a man then the unthinkable thoughts of which could not be repeated or described to innocent ears would have been thought of.

However, with her there laying on his belly, a strange set of thoughts found their way into his head. What would it be like to stand by her side? To be her size? To run his fingers through her hair, and what it might feel like. Of course he had claws so that was impossible. His heart became foolish, and thoughts began to race in his mind one after another, some good, some good with a side of Are-you-kidding-me-why-am-I-thinking-this thoughts. None of this escaped her notice, and the look in his eyes was a bit off. He looked a bit uneasy, but she had no idea what was going on in his head. She kept silent as not to rise further alarm.

"Forget about the belly scratch Jane" he said, hoping it would stop his madness. Her hair danced before his eyes as a gust of wind passed them without permission. Uninvited were the happy palpitations that skipped and jumped, choking him up and eating his words. All the years passed they have known each, they passed like seasons, having no idea that it would be that way. These season like years had been beneficial to Jane, improving her looks, and filling her out a bit. She was no longer a little girl, and she looked favorable in his eyes. "Since when have you been so pretty Jane?" he teased, a bit unaware of where his thoughts were going.

"What do you mean?"

"What I mean, is that it feels like just yesterday that you were shapeless like a twig"

Flicking him on the nose, she sat up, crossing her arms. "That is so mean"

Sliding off his belly, he playfully nudged her, still in a gleeful mood. "Come on Jane, I was not trying to offend you, I was just trying to prove a point"

"And what is that?"

Her pout made him want to pick her up, and hold her in his arms. The glare she flashed him made his heart do a flip flop and almost made him forget what he wanted to say. Leaning close, he could tell she was slowly forgiving him. Her eyes were like a mirror to her soul, reflecting what she was feeling. Letting out a hearty laugh, he nuzzled her. "I am not exactly sure what it is, but you really have changed Jane"

Back at the castle, Dragon napped peacefully while Jane rushed over to the courtyard with bow and arrow. With her eyes set on the target, nothing could stand in her way. However, any good day would not be complete without a Gunther to mess with it. Walking over cooly, he followed right beside her, smirking devilishly. "You almost missed target practice, again. Say Jane, what would Sir Theodore think if I told him?"

"I am a little busy at the moment"

"Of course you are, busy losing. Besides, your arrows will not hit anywhere near the target aligned like that"

With his eagerness to help when not needed, he really enjoyed pointing out her error. Guiding her arm and realigning her arrow properly, the smirk on his face said he was ready to tease or to insult, either one unwelcomed. "Do you not know that little girls should not be playing with dangerous beasts?"

"A beast has never been trouble to me, it is the vanity of beauty who is always getting in my way"

Taking up his bow, he shook off her remark but missed his target as well. "Bat bladders!"

"Perhaps I could have Dragon redirect the wind for you"

"Be quiet"

Dragon had heard enough, and by the look on Jane's face she looked a little out of spirits. When they messed with him it was one story, but when it came to Jane, no one messed with his short life.

"What did you say?" Retorted Dragon.

Flying down, he stood before Gunther, clawing at the ground. Flashing his teeth, he threatened Gunther. "You better watch your tongue short life, that is if you want to keep it"

"Dragon, you know he talks senselessly."

Dragon was seeing red, his wild side becoming apparent and he wanted to dig his claws into him but he did not know why. Why now when it was no different then other times? All he knew was that he was mad, and Gunther was there. "He was harassing you Jane, and it is about time I put an end it to"

Hugging his head, she pleaded, hoping to make him see reason. "No Dragon, this is not what I want"

Glaring at Gunther, he continued "Why should he be let off so easily?"

The touch of her fingers lightly touched his cheek, calming him a bit. Passing her hand over the curves of his face, she softened her eyes toward him. "If you do something you regret then you would be banished, and I would never be able to see you again. I care too much about you to see you do this"

Care, that was right she did care. She was the only one that ever did. His anger faded away, and he felt remorseful. "Jane I am so sorry, I have no idea what came over me"

Caressing his snout, she cooed. "Perhaps you should go and watch the cows for a while, it will make you feel better. Later we will go on patrol and we can talk about it if you like"

"Alright, whatever you say Jane"

Watching him fly off, Gunther asked her. "What came over him?"

"I am not sure, but no more taunts Gunther, at least not for today"

In the afternoon, after patrol they returned to Dragons favorite hill. She laid on his warm belly, looking up at the sky and telling him about her day. It really was not what she did during her day, but the sound of her made him smile. He made her laugh with his honest remarks and she laughed. The way she laughed had a tranquil affect on him and he wished it to keep going. He felt a fluttery sort of feeling, and desired to do what shortlives did. Was it so wrong to wonder if he could too? Nuzzling Jane, he gave her a certain look which made Jane ever more curious "What is the matter?" She asked

Picking up a flower, he smiled "Shortlives, they do these sort of things with the ones they like like right?"

"I think so"

Letting it go, it flew away in the wind. "Do you like that sort of thing? Receiving flowers and what not?"

"If someone were to give them to me then I would not decline them, but no one has ever really done that for me. Well, except Rake when there is a new type of bloom in his garden"

"If I gave you flowers, would you accept them?"

"Of course, but is something bothering you?"

Placing a claw over his chest to muffle the sound of his heart, he sighed."I just feel a bit tired I suppose"

"Why not go back early so you could get some sleep?"

"No, I will be alright for now"