Hey, Buttercup!
BC - Yeah?
Have you ever read a WebToon Comic called "Boo! It's Sex?"
BC - Uh...no?
Well, you might wanna start.
BC - ...Why...? Ice Cream, WHY! Ice Cream, don't you walk away from me!
Brick -...uh? So last time on Green Maiden...
Rose - Hey, does this smell like chloroform?
Princess - Yeah. Kindaaaaaaaaaa- (passes out)
Rose - Thought so.
Blossom - And now back to Green Maiden.
The Unfrozen Lake
"Can I look yet?"
"Nope."
"How about now?"
"Not yet."
"Butch, as much as I love being blind folded and dragged out into the freezing cold with no idea of a destination in mind like any other girl-"
"Okay, now you can look." Buttercup took off the blind fold. Butch had woken her up at the break of dawn, excitement in his voice as he told her to get up and get ready for breakfast. They had been here for four days so far and had done nothing but stay inside and...well, bonded.
Much to Buttercup's surprise and slight dismay, Butch was growing on her even more than before. She often found herself thinking of him when he wasn't around and, shockingly, he had become increasingly easier to talk to. They had even began to banter and tease like they had been married for three decades instead of three days.
Butch seemed to be over the moon about their growing relationship, acting oddly affectionate and even cuddly on the colder nights. He had insisted on sleeping in the same room with her too, but he was also true to his word. He never tried to instigate anything and almost never touched her without permission. His explanation on staying in her room was because the rooms got draftier here than back at his palace and he wanted to make sure she was warm by sharing his body heat.
The terrible image of him being a destructive, blood thirsty menace was melting away to show a big softie.
But that would not save him if he brought her out into the cold for something stupid like-
"Is that a lake?"
"Yes it is!"
"Why isn't it frozen?" Being as they were in Hokkaido, which is notoriously cold, even in the beginning of winter, and that they just got through the first of what would be many storms, Buttercup was shocked to see the water was unfrozen and...strangely enough, warm.
"I'm not entirely sure. Oceans, lake, and water in general is more Boomer's expertise than mine, but this lake is like this all year around. I have almost never seen it frozen. Also, from what I understand, there's a passage to the ocean that Boomer occasionally uses in the spring to view the cherry blossoms."
"You have cherry blossoms here?"
"Yes, but we just missed them. We'll come back with Black to visit them though. I'm in charge of the cherry blossom party this year...well, you are, technically."
"Wait, what?! I'm in the cherry blossom party?! Why?"
"Well, it's always been like that. Once a dragon of my status takes a mate, that mate is in charge of things like this. Next year happens to be the year my mate is supposed to. After that, then it's Bell and lastly, Bubbles. Then Blossom will have hers. That's the main reason I wanted to show you this," Buttercup felt her heart sink. It hadn't really occurred to her that she was now considered nobility.
But he was right. Butch is the second highest ranking dragon in the region, next only to Brick and Blossom. That meant having social responsibilities as well as personal. Which meant that she now shared those responsibilities.
Buttercup was going to be sick.
Never in her life did she even entertain the idea of being a noble lady. She never sat still for lessons, always jumping at the chance to escape so that she could go wrestle with the village boys or hunt down boar.
Now, Buttercup wished she had stayed behind when Rose tried to teach her those things, like flower arranging or needlework.
Oh god, if Blossom sees her needlework, she never hear the end of it.
Blossom would have liked Rose.
A firm hand landed on her shoulder and Buttercup suddenly remembered to breathe. Butch spoke "calm down. I've been doing it on my own for years. I will be there to help." She sighed and smiled at him, patting at his hand.
"Thanks...so did you just bring me all the way to the lake in the cold to give me a nervous break down?" Butch cackled.
"Partly. The other half was so that you could meet the local yokai here. Then we should head into town and get some Hokkaido hot pot, I think you'll love it. They put all kinds of meat in it and-" and he was off, chattering about all the great things about Hokkaido. He made it sound like-
"Butch...is this your home town?"
"Huh?" Butch blinked. Then blushed, "errr...no, I just really like it here. My family's home is in China."
"Really...?" Buttercup thought, "why are you all the way over here instead of near your parents?" Butch shrugged.
"It's just what we dragons do. It's not unheard of for dragons to travel miles away from where they were born. In fact, Blossom was born in a place called Scotland, but she traveled all the way to Japan to be with Brick, even though she didn't have to. Blare is from a place called Ukraine and Bell is from a place called Russia...Boomer, as I understand it, was born somewhere in the ocean...I believe he said it was a place called Ha...wai'i?" Buttercup walked beside him on the icy path as he talked. "You see, joji, we dragons can be a surly lot. You'll notice, but not many other dragons stay in each others territories for too long. The only exception is mates and young dragons who aren't ready to set out on their own yet. We eventually have to have our own space or we run the risk of competing with each other."
Blossom's words from her stay at her lair came to mind.
"He was crowding me, so I've decided to come here for some space."
Will Butch ever feel like that? That he needs to get away from me? Butch glanced at her and smiled.
"I know that look. Only dragons can really compete with dragons, Buttercup. Boomer hasn't willingly left Bubbles behind in decades. I won't need to go away for space or anything like that." Butch pulled her closer, inherently sharing his higher body temperature. The shivers that she didn't even notice began melting away. "I've lived most of my adult life alone...even with the others...it always felt like I was in my own space. I'm ready to share it with you."
Share it with you...Sudden flashes of a life promised to her burst into her mind's eye. Butch going out to conduct business while she played with Black back at the palace. Him returning home with a tired, but warm grin and gifts while dinner awaited him with their small, mismatched family.
Black steadily growing as she held a newborn baby...
Wait...a baby!? Her cheeks flushed and her heart jumped into her throat.
"Hey! What should we do today?" Butch moved away and Buttercup grumbled, having gotten used to the warmth of her draconic husband. Butch snickered, "come on, Buttercup! There's a delicious shop down the road. Let's go get lunch."
"Or we could head back and make lunch." Butch seemed to ponder this. "A homemade lunch by my lovely new wife." Buttercup rolled her eyes and dragged him in the opposite direction, towards the town Butch had taken her to their second day here.
"Whatever, Scaley. Let's go get lunch." She dragged him down the road, the ice making it easier for her to pull his hulking form along. "So why do you like Hokkaido so much?"
Butch shrugged, "the mountains and snow and trees remind me of home..." Butch had a nostalgic look on his face, "you know...in the forest surrounding my parents' liars...there are these glorious, green trees that...when I was young...seemed to stretch far into the skies." He fell in step with her, taking her hand and warming it. "The smell that wafts through the air changes with the seasons. In the spring, the air is sweet, like fresh milk. In the summer, you can practically taste the apricots. In the fall, it's spicy. And in the winter...fresh, like mint leaves." Buttercup looked back at him as he stared at the barren, icy trees of Hokkaido.
The way he spoke was of a man who longed for family...something he had been a part of long ago and now was desperately searching for.
"The mountains...I used to believe that you could reach Heaven by climbing far up them. Snow almost all year around at the tip and the clouds would shroud it like a blanket. I would spend my days, traversing the forest and mountain passages, exploring every nook and cranny that I could. I'd dig up little lost "treasures", as I used to call them...shiny stones, lost things that humans left behind...my first hoard." He chuckled, "I should still have a few things from them."
Buttercup smiled at the idea of an tiny Butch, wandering the forest paths, picking up whatever he believed to be a "pretty treasure", regardless of it's actual worth. Buttercup hummed, "you'll have to show me." Butch nodded.
"One day, you'll have to show me your village." The entire world stopped for a moment. Butch was acknowledging her home, the place she missed more than anything. "I want to know what that place really is...I used to watch over you after we met, but I never really knew what that place was like. What are it's people like...what do you even do there?"
Buttercup smiled, "fine...I'll take you...you can meet your in-laws. I'm sure Lily would love to play with Black and you can entertain her with puppet shows...but you have to take me to see your home town too." Butch blinked.
"You want to see it...? You might have to meet my parents too, you know?" She took his hand and Butch felt a joy he hadn't experienced in so long. The joy of newfound love.
"Does your mother mind the fact that my needlework looks like a rat's nest?"
The duo exited the ramen shop with full bellies and satisfied smiles. Butch stared at the sky, holding his fingers up. "Only less than an hour of sunlight left. We should head back now." She raised an eyebrow.
"How do you know that?" He pulled her close and showed how he positioned his hands. When Buttercup focused, she say that four of his fingers between the sun and the horizon.
"Each finger is fifteen minutes...all four of these fingers mean one hour." Butch smiled, "you ever get lost, keep an eye on the amount of sunlight you have." He smiled and began walking. The soft winds carried flurries of snow like dancers. Buttercup listened to the soft crunch of the snow beneath her feet and the rustling of the trees. Butch smirked suddenly at her, grabbed her hand, and ran forward.
"Whoa!" She instinctively ran alongside him. "What is with you?"
"I can't help it, Joji!" He smiled at her. He twirled around, grabbed her by the waist and hoisted her up, spinning. She screamed, laughing.
"You're crazy!"
"I'm happier than I've ever been!" His sparkling green eyes and wide grin did it for her. The laugh he let out finished the job. While this suddenly jolly and jubilant dragon held her above his head like she was the most precious thing in the world, Buttercup knew.
I'm falling in love with him.
This feeling stuck with her all the way home as she watched him kick up the snow and run through the frosty fields. it stuck with her through the day as he chattered at home with her about new things to try while here and what to do when they got back home. It stuck with her through dinner and when they went to bed.
Butch slept beside her, a calm serene look on his face as warm, smoky breath left his partly opened mouth. The moonlight glistened on his skin, making it shine like alabaster stone. Buttercup couldn't keep her eyes closed for long enough to entice sleep. Butch's animal instincts must have sensed her gaze, because he cracked one bleary eye open. "Joji...? What is it?" His sleep voice sounded more draconian than he did when he was fully awake. "Somethin' wrong?"
"...No...just...I can't sleep."
"Hmmm..." He sat up, his kimono slightly rumpled from sleep. Butch smiled at her, "I keep thinking this is just an amazing dream...and I'll wake up any minute..."
Buttercup smiled softly and brushed some stray strands of hair from his eyes, "no dream..." Silence permeated them as Butch watched her thin fingers toy with his hair. The softness of her scent wafted from her wrists to his nose. He closed his eyes and sighed. She smiled and began to pull her hair away, but he caught her wrist. "Not yet...don't pull away yet."
Buttercup stared into his eyes for what felt like hours. The next words, for some reason, made heat flush over her skin. "Can I kiss you...?" Buttercup's mouth dried and her chest heaved. She bite her lip and Butch watched it slowly brighten to a deeper pink. "Watching you...I'm trying so hard, Buttercup...I don't want to scare you..." He scooted a few inches closer, his breath warming the tip of her ears and down her jaw, "but I really...need to kiss you...to touch you...just for a moment..." Each word was making her heart flutter faster and faster until she could draw a proper breath in.
And she nodded.
Butch leaned forward. drawing his nose along the underside of her jaw, breathing deeply to ingrain her scent more fully. Tiny shivers racked Buttercup's body. Butch froze, "are you scared?"
"No," her voice was quiet, as if this moment would shatter if she spoke to loudly.
"May I keep going?" Buttercup nodded and he continued with his ministrations. His lips found themselves at her ear and Buttercup gasped when he began sucking on her earlobe. Butch's arm slipped around Buttercup and she gripped his forearms. The warmth of his skin was intoxicating, just from her palms. She pulled him closer and closer, until he was practically on top of her. His mouth finally released her earlobe and his hot breath sizzled her ear as he whispered, "may I touch you?"
"Yes," she panted. Suddenly, his hand pulled her closer until she was flush against his chest. He nestled her underneath him and suddenly, it was like the world ended and began with him. Soon, they weren't thinking, just acting. Butch's lips touched everywhere on her neck, jaws, nose, and ears. He nudged her face to the side, allowing him further access to her shoulder. He began to suck on her shoulder, gently nipping and causing her to jolt and drag her nails down his back. Her legs automatically wrapped around his leg as it nestled between hers. Butch groaned when she began to writhe against him, rubbing the forbidden place between her legs. Buttercup finally threw her head back and let out a whine before collapsing with a sigh. Butch chuckled.
"Think you can sleep now?" She nodded tiredly, eyes bleary from arousal. Her core was burning from the residual heat. Whether it was from her husband or her own needy desire, Buttercup couldn't tell.
"Will you? You're looking at me like you...want to eat me." Butch cleared his throat and smirked.
"I do...but let's save that for another night." He rolled off of her slowly, pulled her back to him, and nestled her head under his jaw.
"...What did we just do?"
"Cuddled...I like it..." Butch yawned, "let's be honest, Joji...this may just be the start...I won't touch you again until you say I can...but when I do," Buttercup's heart beat skyrocketed once more for the night, "I'm going to make you see stars."
Did I just shoot up the rating of this story? No. Because this was not sex, but intense, INTENSE cuddling.
BC - You need Jesus.
I do, but moving on.
Let's talk TERRITORY.
So, it's a pretty accepted fact that dragons are extremely territorial. I showcased this a few times in this story with the backstory of Butch freaking out over a lord who entered into his territory (and who also tried to kill him), Blossom questioning why Buttercup was in her territory without proper invitation, and Brick low-key threatening Butch to not come into his territory without asking when he freaked out over Buttercup leaving. This is because, as large predators, dragons require a large area to roam around, hunt, and procure a mate. Males are more into attaining territory than females, but females are very territorial as well. When two dragons mate, they also combine ownership of their territories in the sense that each mate will allow the other to enter and reside in their territories (though some, they will keep territories off limits, like man caves or mom caves). Too many dragons in one area will risk the depletion of resources that they need. So dragons need to be mainly territorial towards other dragons.
This stipulation is lifted for a spare few things: Mates (as mentioned), close friends, and offspring.
Dragon offspring will usually be allowed to enter territories of their parents regardless of their age, but rarely due to them taking care of their own territories when they get older. Dragons usually get territories as large as they can handle due to offspring needing large areas to roam and expel energy. Most dragons will stick to areas that not only give them easy access to specific resources, i.e. mountain dragons will stay in areas that have multiple mountain peaks and chasms, but also areas that remind them of their parents' territories. It's often a common practice for dragon parents to gift two territories to offspring that is about to leave the nest, one from the mother and one from the father.
Dragons will also allow close friends to access certain territories. You'll see this from Butch's group of friends often visiting at random intervals with almost no prior warning in this story, except for non-lethal threats from the territory owner.
Territories are also important to dragons because it shows off their ranks in the Draconian Hierarchy. For example, as the Emperor of the Eastern Dragons, Brick has the most territories, with Butch being the second and Blare following up as the third. This is mainly for the male portion of the hierarchy, as males tend to favor physical strength and battle prowess. The more territories in the dragon community that you have, the more powerful you are politically.
Dragons procure territory in one of two ways; marking the territory using a series of scratches and scents in strategic areas or by battle the residing territory owner and chase them out. Once the dragon has ownership of the territory, they announce it by releasing a thunderous roar that can be heard for miles. Afterwards, the dragon spends a few months in that territory to acquaint themselves with the local fauna, yokai, and human settlements.
So, that's it. That's the author's note. Nothing more than rambling, really, but I thought it was cool to mention. This chapter kinda came out feeling sort of slow in the beginning, but heated up towards the end.
BC - (glares)
Yes, that was an intentional pun and I am NOT SORRY.
Anyway, next chapter, we'll be going back home and possibly be seeing some other people that we haven't heard from.
Black - Next time on Green Maiden!
Blossom - We check on Princess and make sure Rose hasn't killed her...yet.
Brick - And Butch pays a visit to someone he doesn't particularly like.