"So is that everything?" Nergal took the bags in one hand and held up the shopping list with the other. He and Aenir had gone down the mountain, into Edessa, to stock up on groceries, as they did every week. The cold never let up in Ilia, but there was no snowfall today, making the journey safe and a lot easier than he had grown accustomed to. Judging from Aenir's cheerful manner, she was grateful for it.
The dragon reached for the list in his hand and inspected it, herself. "Yes, I think so. I still think I could go for some more meat, though. I always crave lamb when springtime comes around."
"Lambs aren't being imported at the moment, though," Nergal said, suppressing a chuckle. Couldn't she crave chocolate like any other woman? He had grown used to the fact that his landlady, whom he had come to view more as a housemate, was a dragon. The idea no longer struck him as any stranger than living with a human woman. However, sometimes she said things like this that made him realise how different from him she was. "Besides, they're not exactly within our budget right now. I only make so much translating these texts."
"I'm still impressed you got a job. You know that I get a lot of food from the locals for free because of what I do on the mountain, don't you?" Nergal blushed. It was true; the people of Edessa were grateful for Aenir watching over travelers and making journeying over the mountains safer than normal. Still, while he didn't mind the peace and quiet of the mountain, Nergal didn't like sitting still and doing nothing productive, and on one of their trips down to the city he had learned that there were people in need of a translator for certain texts. Being fluent in a number of languages, both mundane and magical, he had offered his services, and his work was accurate enough that he had gathered some reputation by word of mouth. In fact, in one of the bags he was holding was a fresh pile of writings that needed translating.
Aenir laughed. "You're so easy to tease." Nergal didn't have the heart to give her a snappy reply, so she stuck her nose into the air and inhaled. "Ahh. I can practically smell spring on the wind." She turned back to him, smiling. "I can't wait to see all the little ones in a few months." He knew what she was talking about. Early to mid spring was when the dragons in and around Edessa would start mating and laying eggs. Unlike her, however, he wasn't really comfortable thinking about that. Dragons were almost exactly like humans in their mannerisms and personalities, and thinking about their mating season as were they animals didn't feel right to him. He supposed it was alright if Aenir did it, though.
He remained silent as Aenir carried him and their purchases up the mountain, another habit he'd grown used to over time. Once they got home and started to put away their groceries, however, he spoke up. "Actually, Aenir. You mentioned little ones in spring."
"Didn't you know?" she quipped, "early spring is our-"
"-mating season. I know." Nergal paused for a moment as he pulled meat out of his bag and gave it to her. "It just made me think. Aenir, how long have I lived here with you now?"
Aenir had to think about that. "Oh, boy. I'd say… about a year? Little longer than a year. It was midwinter when I found you."
"So I've known you for over a year…" Nergal started, choosing his words carefully. He knew how she got when she thought he was trying to study her. "And I've yet to meet your mate." Aenir turned around, looking at him with a cocked eyebrow. Nergal flustered. "Or… your boyfriend, lover… I thought mate was the word."
She shook her head and went back to unpacking groceries. "I don't have a mate," she said. "As you may have noticed, I'm one for solitude. I like the peace and quiet. But it doesn't sit well with most dragons around here, and I'm not willing to roam in search of someone. So I decided not to go out and mate in spring."
"You don't?" Nergal asked, having finished his bag and setting to making tea. "But isn't that incredibly hard for you? I mean… dragons go into heat, right?"
"Little too personal, Nergal." He made to apologise, but Aenir gestured it was alright. "It's true that I go a little baby crazy during that time. Why else do you think I love seeing other people's young in spring? It takes the pressure off of me." She saw him looking at her with a vague sense of pity, and put her hands on her hips. "Now you listen, Nergal. I wouldn't be living this life if I didn't enjoy it. I can live without a mate and children. Honest."
Nergal hesitated, and remained quiet as he made a fire under the kettle. He piped up once he put the water on, though. "I can't help but feel like I'm getting in your way as far as this goes, though."
"There -is- that, yes," Aenir mused, putting the now empty bags away. "Some people, humans and dragons alike, seem to think you're my mate." Nergal froze. It wasn't the first time he'd heard the assumption; after all, Glacius had almost killed him on this misunderstanding. This time, however, he was not so quick to dismiss it. What was his relationship with Aenir like? She was definitely not just his landlady. They'd gone past that stage long ago. They were friends, that much he knew, but… was that all they were? He definitely thought her attractive. She was beautiful and smart in addition to generous and considerate, after all. But her mate..? No, even disregarding the lack of a physical aspect to their relationship, he would not call himself that.
Aenir was looking at him funny. "Nergal," she said, "I asked what tea you wanted."
"Oh," he said, shaking himself out of it. "Lemon. Shall I go and get the blankets?"
"I love it when you think ahead."
It wasn't cold or late or anything like that, but it was something they almost always did when they came back from town; like some sort of ritual, they would sit themselves down in the living room with blankets and tea. Nergal smiled as Aenir leaned against him and they put both blankets around themselves before he reached for the two cups on the table next to him. He gave one to her and watched her as she settled into a comfy, lazy position. They had started getting comfortable together just a few weeks ago, but nowadays they barely thought about it consciously.
Right now, however, Nergal did. "And you say you don't want a mate."
"You know fine well this is warmer."
"And you know fine well this room is warm enough with that fire going."
"Hmmmmm."
He put an arm around her and his mouth and nose in her hair. She smelt nice, he noted. He'd never noticed that before. They remained quiet until Aenir finished her tea and set the cup down, now actually putting her arms around Nergal and shutting her eyes as she hugged herself to him. "Aenir?"
"You're right," she muttered. "I wouldn't mind a mate."
"I see." He wasn't sure why she said it now. Nor was he sure how to feel about her possibly going to bring in another dragon. Would it mean he would have to go? Probably. If her chosen mate was as possessive as Glacius, they certainly couldn't sit like this anymore. Nergal sighed, not sure what to say to her.
Aenir smiled. "But it would have to be you."
What? For a moment, Nergal could only stare at her as she looked up at him, smiling. "Aenir, eh… Are you sure about that?"
"Yeah." Once he set down his tea, Aenir wound her arms more tightly around him. "You're good-looking, smart, and healthy. All positive genes that I'd like my children to have."
"That's why?" Nergal said, a little out of it. "That's… not what I was expecting." Or hoping for.
Aenir laughed. "I'm just saying," she said. "It's a compliment, Nergal. Besides, I think you'd be a good father."
"That's the first time anyone's said THAT about a user of dark magic," Nergal said, laughing. He didn't want to make light of it, he just honestly wasn't sure how to feel about this. It made sense that dragons, and by proxy Aenir, would choose their mates based on what they could mean and do for the children. He stroked her back absently. "But Aenir… you know that you and I can't breed, of course. I'm human, and you're a dragon."
"It's not impossible," Aenir muttered, resting her head against his chest again. "There's the odd dragon who's had children with a human. I don't have the illusion that we'll conceive the first time, but it's definitely possible." She hesitated. "…you don't want to?"
"I don't know," Nergal admitted. "I certainly hadn't expected to get together with someone for such… pragmatic reasons." He was a scholar, of course, and he saw the sense in Aenir's reasoning. She was right, it was just unexpected for him.
"It's not just that." Aenir loosened herself from his waist and leaned against him such that her face was level with his. "You've probably noticed that I haven't thrown you out of my house yet, despite you having fully recovered and the witch hunts at the base of the mountains having ended long ago." He hadn't even thought about the witch hunts in months. He'd just… stayed. "I've grown fond of you, Nergal. …very fond. Having you in my house has been great. I didn't know I was lonely, but I'm not anymore. I don't want you to leave."
She was almost uncomfortably close to him, he could feel her chilly breath on his face. Everything about Aenir was a little chilly. Nergal assumed it had to do with what she was. "I…" he muttered, swallowing. "I need time to think about this."
"Of course," she said, leaning back. "I don't expect you to jump me and sire a child right now. We still have a few months until mating season comes around… please think about it, okay?"
"I will." He hesitated. Was this what he felt for Aenir? He wished his feelings were as easy to study and decipher as foreign languages were. Did he want to make love to her and have children with her? His age wasn't exactly catching up with him yet, but he wondered if there would ever be a human woman like her. He wasn't sure about children, but there was certainly something else he felt the urge to do.
Aenir beat him to it. "Come here," she said, as she leaned closer towards him again. Nergal obeyed, letting her put her hands in his neck to pull him close as their lips met for the first time.
