Chapter 67

Keeping Dragons Fed

The rest of the cruise into Barcelona went by without further surprises. It was a humid, sunny Monday morning, an hour after breakfast had been served, when they disembarked from the ship. It was an easy enough matter to locate a hub of taxis near the port, and a pair were paid to drive them out of the city. The ride northeast towards Granollers was scenic and relatively unimpeded by traffic once they got out of the heart of the city, taking just under an hour, and they were dropped off at a café on the southern side of the small industrial city.

Pip and Seras went for a walk down the cracked paved street while the others ordered drinks and snacks to pass the time. They came back about thirty minutes later in a large grey minivan from the used car dealership; whose staff, Pip reported as they loaded in, were all too happy to accommodate Seras's charming request to waive all that pesky paperwork and accept a cash payment.

A twenty minute drive north through rolling hills that were lightly forested and dotted with scrubby brushes and mottled clay and rock heavy soil brought them to the unassuming little town of Corró d'Amunt. On the outskirts of the town, nestled in a more densely forested valley, resided the safehouse they'd be staying at for the next two nights because of their plans changing.

The Neo-Mudéjar villa had been built a century and a half earlier, but had been periodically modernized by the different generations of caretakers hired for its upkeep. The sprawling single floor layout featured, among other things, six bedrooms, a small library, three sorts of entertainment rooms, a hunting trophy room of animals killed by the original owner and a stocked mini bar, a solar, a finished basement with an extensive wine cellar, and indoor and outdoor pools. Xander was informed the latter pool was currently not fit for swimming, and to stay out of the former unless he had adult supervision. It sported a front terrace that looked out towards the downtown hub roughly three kilometers away, and a back terrace that was set up for hosting outdoor dinner parties and bonfires. The four car garage was currently fully occupied, so Pip brought the vehicle to a halt in front of it.

Mercedes glanced over the house as they exited the vehicle, taking in the elegantly styled Moorish brickwork, horseshoe arched windows and doors, and inlaid tiling designs, while the Vampire King informed the human family members of the general accommodations. As Seras teased Xander into having a race inside to call dibs on which rooms they wanted, and Pip and Walter went to the trunk to grab some of the luggage, she glanced over the top of the vehicle and said with a hint of wry humor, "Dragony husband of mine; I know you like your creature comforts when feasible, so I wasn't expecting us to end up at a rat-infested hole in the wall, but isn't this a bit much for a safehouse?"

"Of course not, draga mea," The Dragon said with a smirk as he circled around the vehicle. "One never knows just how long they may need to stay hidden away once they go to ground, so the accommodations had best provide enough modest comforts for whoever may be making use of them and whatever immediate entourage they may be responsible for."

Mercedes glanced at the house, then back to him. Her mother's family were nobles and most of the family members had larger residences for their main homes, but their secondary residences in whichever country they didn't primarily live in or their summer homes they used annually were along these lines or a bit smaller. If they needed accommodations in an area away from their residences, they went to hotels the same as anyone else, even if those suites rented were higher class ones, unless some special occasion called for renting a house for a large gathering. "'Modest'? You consider this a 'modest' safehouse?"

Vlad gave the smallest of shrugs as he took her arm in his. Leading her along the winding path to the front of the house, he said, "If there was some event that caused Seras to have need of bringing the Wild Geese here because a mission went wrong somewhere relatively nearby, they'd be sleeping multiple men per bedroom. When Mihnea's human family was still alive, properties of this size necessitated a few of the less immediate members camping in their vardos in the backyard. So yes, even if it's only being occupied by the six of us at the moment and isn't often needed, I would call it modest."

"And you said you have dozens of these 'modest' safehouses scattered around?" Mercedes asked with a raised eyebrow.

"In Europe, it's just over two dozen safe houses of this scale, and half a dozen considerably more spacious ones," The King of Death said with smirk widening enough to fully reveal canines. "There's a scattering of a score of others throughout continents I frequent less often. I've never had desire or reason to travel to the States before recent events, so I don't have any property established there; but had we need of jumping the southern border to make safe exit, we do have a couple more recently acquired safehouses in Mexico and South America. And then there's another dozen or so condos or apartments scattered between here and Russia that I've likewise acquired since my release for when it's been just myself or my servants needing shelter; but we're not in quite so dire straits as to need to resort to using those and have our little family in such cramped conditions.

"Particularly not when places with a wide view and lower immediate population are much easier to keep defensive watch over, instead of trying to monitor for threats that could be lurking amongst the activities of tens or hundreds of thousands of people constantly moving about in a city. One never knows when, for instance, Van Helsings or Iscariot or other such entities are going to have a particularly vehement offensive streak and go blowing up a handful of safehouses, as well as my favored mansion or castle of the time, so having a variety of fallback options is prudent. And I do happen to have the benefit of an ageless existence, so I can afford to wait until markets are favorable, instead of rushing acquisitions, and setting up adequate safeguards for their upkeep should I find myself indisposed for a time."

Mercedes had no rebuttal for the logic of having options for safe haven, even if the magnitude was startling. She hadn't gone prying into Liam's financial business because that was his own private concerns, so outside of the widely publicly known bits and the few residences she had been to, she had no idea what his real estate situation was... But she was pretty damn certain even he didn't have a quarter as many residences just laying around. She shook her head and said as they crossed the terrace, "Someone's clearly been a very busy and industrious dragon over the last six centuries..."

"We all need our hobbies; this particular one of mine just so happens to also be practical. Before I forget to make mention of it, the master bathroom has a small sauna attached. The caretakers had it and the pools added during the last renovations in my absence because they were unaware of my nature, but I haven't gotten around to having that torn out to expand the office on the other side of the bathroom. You might enjoy making use of it before your evening massage. If it's to your liking, I'll leave it and the office as they are."

Mercedes glanced up at him, hearing the hint of smugness in his voice and feel bits of it vibrating in his aura. "You're really enjoying having your homefield advantage restored and the chance to show off a bit, aren't you?"

"I have no idea what you mean, draga mea," Vlad countered, smirk not changing as they entered the foyer. "My Queen has regrettably been away for a time. Now that you've finally returned to me, I have a responsibility to update you as to the state of our resources. I don't wish to overwhelm you while you're still adjusting and recovering, so I'm only sharing the basics of one sector of our holdings, and informing you that at this particular safehouse there happens to be a useful amenity to aid your comfort while recovering."

Mercedes gave a disagreeing hum to that assertion, well knowing he was again telling a half truth. She glanced back up at her husband and a rather rapid series of thoughts struck her, causing her to giggle and stop walking.

Vlad raised an eyebrow and asked, "Yes, draga mea?"

The young woman said in good humor, "I don't recall what sort of Count Stoker's book said you were posing as, but if we ever have the freedom to get out a bit, I'm suddenly having the rather strong desire to drag His Majesty with the mysteriously acquired fortune to a costume party or the right type of convention for a Count of Monte Cristo cosplay."

The King of Death chuckled at that suggestion and then said, "If such would please my own beloved Mercedes, I could be persuadable for indulging one of your hobbies for the novelty of the experience, particularly if the attire was of Edmond's later regal outfits."

"Really?!" Mercedes asked with a pleased smile. To his nod, she said, "Well then, consider it a deal that if an opportunity arises for an appropriately period themed event and you deem it to be safe for us to attend, we are doing a classy Count of Monte Cristo dress up."

The King of Death chuckled again as the seer committed to plans she had thought up and suggested for their future. She might still have a few lingering reservations about consummating their marriage anew and permanently closing the door on that exit option; but the little mouse wasn't actively entertaining thoughts of how to make an attempt to go skittering away, and she was starting to tentatively make herself at home in his little trap. His siege on his Queen's defenses would be coming to a most satisfying resolution in the relative near future, so he could concede to being a gracious and rewarding victor as part of the terms of her pending surrender. "As my angel desires." He leaned down and exchanged a brief kiss with her, then said to his now blushing wife, "Let me show you to our room and get things settled in, and then you and Pip can decide what's to be done for the next few days' meals for yourselves and Xander."

Mercedes gave an agreeable nod to that suggestion and followed him through the house that, for all its space, felt cozy and welcoming with it's Spanish influenced rusty orange, dusky yellow, sage green, and cream colored motifs and abundance of decorative wooden furnishings with complimentary warm toned accents.

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Lunchtime was quickly turning into a disaster. Pip had used Seras's satellite phone to pull up the menus from the two local restaurants and was translating the available options to his cousins so they could pick what they wanted. Mercedes was more than willing to try a number of the available dishes. Xander, on the other hand, had a five and a half year old's palate and bluntness, and both were rearing up as lunch options were offered.

"What about the Amanida de llagostins?" Pip asked, green eye gaze going from the screen to the boy. "It's prawn salad with tender sprouts, pomegranate, sweet potato chips and cava and honey vinaigrette."

"What's prawns?" Xander asked with a wary glance at his mother from where he sat on a high barstool at the island counter in the kitchen. A kitchen that currently had painfully empty cabinets because, unlike the alcohol in stock around the house, food was perishable.

"They're kind of like shrimp," Mercedes answered. She turned her attention to her cousin, but before she could reply to the negative, Xander was already speaking.

"Ewww, yuck! They're wrinkly and have those weird little squiggly bits inside."

Pip sighed, glanced at the screen, and asked, "Well then, what about the Broqueta de xai? That's lamb skewers marinated with sour apple mayonnaise?"

"Why do people eat sour apples?!" Xander asked with a scrunched up, grossed out face. "They taste rotten! And sour apple mayo?! Ugh! That's probably like super duper extra gross! Why can't they just make it normal?!"

"Xander," Mercedes said with a hint of frustration, "don't be rude. 'Normal' is a relative term based on perspective. Around here, that is a normal way to make lamb. It wouldn't hurt you to try something new."

Xander stubbornly shook his head and crossed his arms in front of himself as he said, "Next, Cousin Pip."

Pip exchanged an exasperated look with the boy's mother, sighed, then scrolled down the menu, scanning for something the boy might be willing to try. "Hm... Ah, maybe this will be more your taste. They have beef fillet cubes in a stroganoff sauce, served with a side of cors de carxofes- artichoke hearts layered with Iberian ham and parmesan cheese?"

Xander pouted at that suggestion, but actually gave it a few seconds thought. Sky blue gaze turned to his mother and he asked, "Stroganoff is that beef soup with mushrooms and onions right?"

"Yes," Mercedes said with a nod. "I think what they're offering is the beef chunks in a similar sauce like it's a gravy."

Pip nodded in confirmation, "Correct, ma petite cousine."

"Can I have just the beef?" Xander asked tentatively.

"You will need to pick something to eat along with the beef," Mercedes offered in compromise. "That won't be very filling on its own, nor is it a balanced meal. Whatever you don't want from a combination of meals, I'll be more than willing to eat."

The child huffed and said with an irritated growl to his voice, "Next."

Both adults sighed and Pip scrolled further down, to the seafood main meals. There was a great deal of octopus and squid dishes, which he already knew the child would refuse. Finally, he asked, "Well, what about this? The Suprema de bacallà? The menu says that's Icelandic cod supreme with pine nut cream, toasted pine nut oil, and crispy walnut and raisin bread. Who doesn't like a nice fish filet and bread?"

"But the fish has got all that weird stuff on it," Xander refused with a whine entering his voice. "Why do they gotta put all the weird sauces and stuff on it?! And I don't like raisin bread!"

Mercedes sighed and asked her cousin, "Maybe we could ask them to make a piece plain, and toss together a frills free salad on the side?"

Before Pip could answer, Xander said with increasing frustration, "I don't want whatever weird stuff they'll put together! I want normal food! Why is that so hard?! Pizza? Hamburgers? Stir fry? A normal steak and normal potatoes? Pork chops? A regular old soup that doesn't have weird fish parts in it?"

"Alexandre," Mercedes said with patience that was starting to be strained. "We're in another country, and it's not like we're on the cruise ships or a major city with an abundance of restaurants catering to tourists. The local cuisine in towns like this is different. We're trying to find you something to eat, but you have to work with us a bit. Pick something that's close enough to something you're used to for lunch, and then we can send Seras or Walter for a drive down to Granollers where they have a few different grocery stores. I'm sure they can find enough ingredients from those places that I could make you up something you're used to for tonight's dinner and for tomorrow's meals."

The five year old gave another frustrated growl and said, emphasizing each word, but still refraining from yelling, "I don't want the yucky food at the restaurant! I want normal food!"

Both adults sighed, exchanging another look. Pip said in French with exasperated humor, "I place the blame squarely on your father's side for him having such an unadventurous American appetite."

Mercedes snorted back a laugh and shook her head. She replied in French, "He's just a child, but you're not wrong about mon père. I still can't fathom how he and ma mère managed to stay married as long as they did with how very little they had in common."

Pip gave a shrug and muttered, turning his attention back to the phone, "Had to have been the sex. That's the only thing I can think of."

Mercedes gave a disgusted groan. "Ferme la bouche; I don't need that kind of mental image possibly popping into my head."

"What are you talking about?" Xander asked with a puzzled look going between them.

"Learn French and you will be able to follow along," Pip replied glibly in English. "Until then, mind your business and think on what you want for lunch."

Xander gave another frustrated growl, arms now going to the counter and head thunking down on them. "They don't have anything I want! I want normal food!"

As Mercedes was trying to think of some idea to placate her son because it seemed unlikely Pip would find something from this last menu, she felt Vlad's energy approaching. Thankfully, he didn't have the bad mood vibes coming off him, but she had a feeling this extended mealtime argument had kept him from taking the mid-day nap he had been planning on. She glanced towards the entryway she knew he'd be coming through, from both where his energy was and the sounds of approaching boot steps, meaning to offer an apology for disrupting his rest. The apology was forgotten, washed from her mind by a wave of surprise and buzzing deja vu feeling, when her husband turned the corner to come down the hall and she took in his appearance.

The Dragon had shifted out of his alias's outer appearance and back to Vlad, but his current outfit was a new one- A simple, long sleeved, black tunic laced down the front; a fitted, sleeveless, crimson body-coat with a black and gold embroidery design stitched down the front panels and along the pockets; and a pair of black, heavy woven cotton pants that were a bit looser fitting than his usual clothing. His ebony facial hair was its usual neatly groomed appearance, but his long hair was pulled back into a tail by a length of knotted black leather. The only things that were not part of whatever favored old outfit this was, were the boots his pants were tucked into, as he was back to wearing his Victorian era riding boots.

The Vampire King clearly noticed her glancing him over with a confused expression. He asked with eyebrow raised as he approached, Romanian accent allowed to surface, "Something the matter, draga mea?"

The seer continued to stare as she felt intuition tickling at her mind, but the impression was fuzzy and not becoming a full vision. "That outfit... I feel like I've seen you wearing it before... And that you wore it for outdoors activities of some kind."

"Indeed," Vlad confirmed with a smirk, reaching the archway to the kitchen. "You made this hunting outfit as a gift for my first birthday after we married, while we were still living in Moldavia in exile." Forest gaze turned to their son and he said, "Xander, you said you wanted a 'normal' meal?"

Xander gave a sigh of relief and said, "Yeah, dad. Pleeeease can I have a normal meal?"

"You may, but you're going to work for it and the meal will be longer in coming," Vlad stated decisively. "You're not in any danger of starving from the delay with as much as you had for breakfast and at the café. We don't have the time to start teaching you how to hunt right now, and you're still a bit young for it; but we can at least get in a lesson on how to skin, butcher, and roast an animal. While I'm out getting the boar and some wild vegetables to flame grill on the side, you go get changed into a darker casual outfit, pull your hair back, and get your shoes back on. You're going to help Pip carry some wood from the bin that's to the side of the back terrace over to the fire pit, and then go pick some pears from the trees in the front yard. I'll be back by the time you are done."

"Wait, seriously?!" Xander asked with intrigue. "We're gonna have roast boar?!" He had only seen that in movies, but it had looked like yummy normal meat.

"Indeed. Wild boar are rather common around here and range up into the nearby mountains. No one is going to notice or care if one goes missing. What doesn't get roasted for lunch and dinner can get made into other things for tomorrow's meals. When we're ready to leave, whatever is left over can get tossed to a hound so it's not left laying around."

"Awesome!" Xander hopped off the stool with a grin. "Alright. I'll go change." As he darted past the vampire, he said, "Thanks, dad!"

Vlad gave a nod to the child and then turned his attention to his wife. "You and Pip should order as you like from the restaurant for lunch. Seras and he can make the trip into Granollers for other staples needed, once she wakes up from her nap. Have you ever cooked with boar meat in this life?"

Mercedes shook her head and said, "Can't say that I have. It's been quite a few years since someone in the family brought home boar from a hunting vacation because it's not local back home, and ma grandmère and ma tant got those meals prepared with the chef before we arrived to the house." She looked to her big cousin and asked, "Do you have any experience with that?"

Pip shook his head and said, "Outside tossing the whole pig on a spit for a free meal for my men and I, non."

Vlad asked, "In that case, would either of you like to aid Walter in the kitchen tomorrow and learn a few new recipes from him?"

"That sounds like fun," Mercedes agreed immediately.

Pip shrugged and said, "Never hurts to learn a few new things in the kitchen and I've got nothing better to do."

Mercedes added with a bit of humor, gaze turning back to her husband, "I'm almost surprised you're not offering to give that lesson as well."

Vlad chuckled at the teasing comment. "While I've always excelled in hunting, and eventually had enough survivalist lessons in foraging to keep from poisoning myself with the wrong vegetation and cooking those things in basic ways on a campfire, the finer points of cooking have never been among my skills."

"Fair enough," Mercedes conceded. "Thank you for coming up with an alternative for today's meal arrangements that placated our little dragon."

"Of course," Vlad said with another laugh. "I'll be back shortly with that boar."

"Happy hunting."

As Vlad turned to shadow, his voice echoed back, "Thank you, draga mea." The shadowy form sped out of the house, heading towards the woods behind the property.

Pip glanced in the direction the shadows had disappeared, then back to his baby cousin. He said dryly in French, "Not to imply it's a bad thing, because it's not, but I don't know if I'm ever going to get entirely used to seeing the Father of Vampires acting even this domestic. Alucard, Monsieur Imperious Vampire King, just left to literally bring home the bacon."

Mercedes broke into giggles at that observation. When her laughter eventually tapered off, she posed the suggestion, likewise back to French, "Perhaps you should ask yourself instead, what could be more natural than a dragon hunting on his own lands to feed his son and preparing that son to eventually be able to do the same for himself and family?"

Pip shook his head with a snort of laughter. "Mon Dieu... I suppose that's one way to look at it."

"I'm finding that a large percentage of his behavior is much easier to understand if I remind myself to think along the lines of 'dragon', not typical 'vampire'."

"Oui, and I can't help but notice just how cozy you two are becoming in such short time. I have to say, that's also still taking some getting used to."

Mercedes shrugged and said more seriously, "I can't blame you for that. I'm still adjusting to all this too..." She hesitated, then asked carefully, just in case Seras wasn't deeply asleep yet and the Draculina's super hearing might pick up the conversation, "How are you holding up with everything else? There's been a few new changes for you as well."

Pip considered the question, then said with his carefree smirk making an attempt at a reassuring appearance, "A few of my understandings of things might be undergoing a rapid evolution and that has its passing strains, but I know the past can't be changed and what's important to me hasn't changed. So long as I have my Seras at my side and know mes petits cousins are safe and happy, I can stay focused both on business and enjoying the peaceful moments as they come."

Mercedes returned the smile, trying to ignore the fluctuation of conflicted emotions coming from her cousin, as he was clearly trying to do. "That's fair enough. I know I've been saying it a lot, but I'm really glad you're here with us."

The mercenary Captain gave a nod and, after a few more seconds of thought, said with pensive honesty, "So am I, ma petite cousine. This is not how I would have seen my life going fifteen years ago; but, outside wishing I had been quicker to handle certain matters along the way, I can't say that I have any significant complaints or regrets for how things have turned out."

The seer's smile faded; a bit of her own underlying guilt was surfacing, almost mirroring the bits she could feel coming from her cousin now, for having unintentionally set off that chain of events, even if things had turned out mostly alright in the end. She said seriously, in hopes of at least easing some of his lingering guilty feelings, "Weird as things might still feel to me right now, I know I wouldn't be alive or as able to cope with everything if it wasn't for you; and I will always be grateful that you always believed me and did everything you could to protect me. And I have no doubts you've continued to do your best in the years since. No one could rightfully ask more from you, Pippi; and I hope you'll eventually let go of whatever regrets you might still feel for things you think could've been done better."

Pip nodded again and said just as seriously, "Mais oui, ma petite cousine, I am trying, and perhaps someday..."

His words came to an abrupt cutoff because they both heard Xander calling out in a mild panic, "Mama! I need help! The brush is stuck in a knot and it hurts to try pulling!"

Pip couldn't contain his amusement and said between snorts of laughter, "Sounds like you should go help your little 'dragon' before he ends up in another mood. I'll meet you both out back."

"Sounds like a plan," Mercedes agreed with giggles of her own. "Thank you, Pippi."

The excommunicated Knight gave another nod of his head and said, "You're welcome, ma petite cousine."

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Besides some expected, mild squeamishness in regards to seeing a freshly dead animal corpse being gutted and dismembered for the first time and the usual amounts of blood and gore that necessitated, The King of Death could honestly give his young son praise for taking the survival lesson seriously. While the elder dragon took care of removing organs to avoid them rupturing and spoiling the meat, and cut through the toughest pieces requiring more strength than a child possessed; the younger dragon was intently listening to the instructions on how such things were done, and had been willing to get a little messy with "splatters of gross stuff" as he put in the work of cutting up various portions of meat into pieces that looked mostly recognizable to what he usually saw prepackaged in stores.

Xander washed off and changed once the butchering process was done. While he was doing so, his dad got the first slabs of boar situated on the fire and his mom and big cousin ferried excess cuts to the fridge for later cooking. The boy came back outside to eat the fresh fruit and lightly grilled wild onions and mushrooms as they waited for the meat to cook, and was kept entertained by listening to some hunting stories the adults decided to share. Once the meat was ready, he gladly and proudly chowed down the food he had helped prepare.

The vampire excused himself at that point to take his much delayed rest, and the adult cousins continued storytime to keep the child occupied while waiting for enough meat to cook for dinner. Seras and Pip eventually made the trip into the city, and successfully came back with the ingredients Walter had suggested they buy for the rest of the meals.

Vlad woke up an hour and a half after Xander had been put to bed. He let himself sleep in that much later than usual to shake off the worst of his creeping exhaustion caused by having made so many daytime cameos for his son during the last week and a half, and with so many also taking place in the middle of the ocean and away from his coffin. They had consistently had sunny days during this trip; which had been pleasant for the humans in the family, and helpful towards not aggravating his wife's phobia of potential complications to their travel while on the ships, but it hadn't been as enjoyable for the vampires. While he sometimes summoned up some light clouds that were easily ignored to diffuse some of the light, he had refrained from constantly blocking it out because that could have risked drawing unwanted attention from sustained odd weather patterns following their course. After exchanging a few words with his wife to inform her where he was off to, he left to hunt down his own sort of meal to finish restoring himself back to normal.

When he returned to their bedroom, Mercedes looked up from the book of aliases, having been studying the basic information for the next she was supposed to be taking on for their pending Euro road trip. As the shadows swiftly reformed into Vlad still in his hunting outfit, she glanced him over and asked, "Not switching into your snuggly outfit?"

Vlad met her golden-brown gaze with a smirk forming. "Would my angel prefer for me to get changed into something more comfortable?"

Mercedes could feel the blush creeping in on her cheeks, but gave a casual shrug as her gaze went back to her book. She said dismissively, with a small smirk of her own that she couldn't fully suppress, "Well, I was of the thought that my dragony husband might like a treat as thanks for sacrificing some sleep that I know you value so much to help with our son earlier today, which wouldn't actually require a change of clothes; but you staying in that outfit could indicate the busy King has plans for the evening that need your attention and I wasn't yet made aware of, such as whatever preparation for meeting with my friends tomorrow that you might feel needs be done to ensure it goes safely, or having some sort of phone calls to arrange other matters..."

The Dragon's smirk widened a fraction to the flirtation. A hint of pleased anticipation was in his voice as he crossed the room. "I have no such plans for the evening as everything that needs be arranged has been seen to." His wife glanced up from the little ledger as he came to a stop next to the bed. "And I am always hungry for whatever treats my Queen may have in mind."

Mercedes didn't answer that implied query immediately. Her gaze purposefully averted and she took her sweet time in closing the book, shifting from how she had been lounging back in the bed to sitting on the edge, and setting the book aside on the nightstand next to the bed. Golden tinted gaze made a slow sweep around the room, and a few gestures put up wards to make their little privacy bubble. She could almost feel the dragon's gaze following her every movement, and she could certainly sense little spikes of his arousal starting to escape his efforts to contain it.

The smirk was even harder to keep to a minimum, but the empath did her best as her gaze leisurely traveled back and finally met the dragon's, which now had little flickers of fire dancing through the foresty green. As she eased herself off the bed to stand in front of him, she said with as much of a passive tone as she could manage, "Well, as it happens, I did have a thought as to what sort of treat you might appreciate."

"And what might that thought be, draga mea?" Vlad asked with smirk broadening even further as his gaze glanced her over with appreciation for how the new, long, satin nightgown she was wearing was clinging to her curves and bared quite a bit of the expanse of her breasts.

Mercedes felt her blush deepening at the openly lustful attention and averted her gaze again, this time to try keeping her own reaction in check. She reached up with her working right hand and toyed with the top button of his coat, saying with a considering drawl to her words, "I was thinking that, even with as enjoyable as our recent evening diversions have been, and I do know my dragony husband has been enjoying them as well..." She gently pulled loose the first button and fingers trailed down to the next. "...when you're 'devouring' my senses the way you do, that does leave you having to extend all the work for having your snacks."

Vlad could feel his desire swelling, both mentally and physically, as his mind ran through different delightful ideas his little mouse of a wife might be currently willing to consider. He said with a rumbling anticipation as he tried to keep his reactions under control, "That may be true. While I've not minded in the least, I take it my angel wishes for me to have a little more restraint this evening so she may keep her senses better about her?"

Mercedes released the second button on his coat as she said, "I know it might prove a little difficult to exercise that sort of restraint..." The third button was undone. "...Particularly if I were to return certain favors you've been so generously bestowing with that all too skilled mouth of yours..." The quiet growl of desire that rumbled in his throat caused her smirk to creep wider, and her fingers released the fourth, and next to last, button. "But if you think you can keep yourself chained up enough to let me have my senses, that is, at least until you absolutely need the release..." The last button came loose and her fingers slipped beneath the now open coat to caress up along the hard abs beneath the soft tunic. Her gaze finally turned up as she finished with a purposefully coquettish tone. "...I'd like to spend some time showing my appreciation for what a very good dragon you've been throughout today."

Vlad could feel his smirk growing to a full fang revealing grin as he rumbled back, "My beloved angel certainly knows how to make requests of me that could almost qualify as self-inflicted torture, but I will gladly keep myself restrained for as long as she wishes to otherwise bestow the mercies of her gratitude."

Mercedes' hand traveled down to his waist as her smirk was finally allowed free rein, and she leaned up to give a playful nip that tugged at his lower lip. As her husband gave a brief desirous groan to the teasing, she said with a continued purr to her voice, "Well then, my dragon..." Her fingers gave a tug at the top button of his pants, and she gave a meaningful glance to the bed. "...I think you should get laid out comfortably, and then I can begin."

Vlad let out a throaty chuckle and said, "Before I do, I'd like to say while words are easier to form, that I do so appreciate what the modern age and a less restrictive choice in beliefs has done for my angel's willingness to express her desires and issue her commands."

Mercedes smirk became all the more impish. "Keep being a good dragon, and you just might find out some of those desires have also likely evolved from however you remember them."

Vlad gave a low growl to that; but this time it wasn't wholly from arousal. One part was indeed arousal from her words themselves, which was deepened as his thoughts flashed to things his psychic sight had seen hidden away in her old apartment and how much he'd be enjoying such activities and more with her. But there was also a flare of possessiveness tinged with what he well knew was greedy jealousy caused by the indirect reminder that his wife already had in this life an introductory familiarity and comfort with some alternative pleasures as a result of having been with other men before he could locate her again, and that not all of those liaisons could be grudgingly written off as necessity to bring their son back.

The Dragon did his best to smother down that more destructive fire in his thoughts, rationally knowing she hadn't been intending to spark them and they weren't conducive for keeping their marriage progressing smoothly. As he made that attempt, he reached over and laced his fingers through her hair, pulling her in for a kiss that he could privately admit to himself was fueled by both arousal and an entirely territorial instinct. Thankfully, his Queen didn't shy away from returning the kiss, despite that he knew she must be picking up on some vague sense of what was currently lurking beneath his desire; which provided him an immediate, if minor, placation. He kept her wonderfully warm and soft lips engaged until he not only had certain urges wrestled back under control, but his senses told him she was nearing a point where she had absolute need of properly catching her breath.

When Vlad finally released his wife, he waited for those golden eyes to open and meet his gaze. When they did, he said honestly and with a growl remaining in his voice, "Believe when I say, draga mea; as much as I do enjoy my snacks and treats you're graciously allowing me for the time being, I am dearly looking forward to the nights when you're finally comfortable enough to start sharing whatever desires you may be keeping hidden. It's going to be the greatest of pleasures to enlighten you once more to how very swiftly I can think up ways to accommodate whatever desires you express, helping you discover just how far I can push those desires to send you screaming over the edge, and then piecing you back together just enough for you to breathlessly issue the command for me to do it again."

That sultry dark encouragement caused yet another renewal to Mercedes' blush. And her freshly aroused mind was quick to latch onto the enticement, thoughts quickly forming intrigued queries of just what sorts of deviant pleasures he might truly have up his sleeves. But those were thoughts that were just a bit too dangerous to be entertaining at the present time, she was not ready to risk getting burned again, so the empath pushed them down as she took a few measured breaths. And, thankfully, despite all the mutual teasing, the dragon was largely managing to keep himself under his mental lockdowns, so she was able to get her thoughts fully in order and remain thinking clearly. She really, really appreciated his self-control in moments like this and that he had yet to try pressing different advantages, especially with his talents being what they were.

Finally, Mercedes was able to say in a mostly steady voice, "Perhaps some night I might take you up on that offer; but for tonight, you're the one who is supposed to be getting more comfortable." She gave a glance to the bed and added with coquettish tone managing to make a return, "Now, is my dragon going to follow my original request, or do I need to go so far as to command you to lay down?"

That teasing suggestion encited a rumbling laugh, but Vlad did as requested so his angel could commence with his treat being given; and knew he'd be riding that blissful wave into returning back the favors so they could both have at least a few more releases before the night was through.