Welcome to a chapter I call " Screw off, Wuya."
This was getting old.
Wuya had been waiting for weeks for Chase to come find her.
She had always flirted with the idea of an intimate relationship with the powerful dragon. After all, he was everything she looks for in a man: Powerful, ruthless and gorgeous.
But for a while, making subtle hints at deepening their partnership had been lower on her list of important things. After all, she was concentrating on collecting Shen Gong Wu, restoring her body and keeping that idiot Jack Spicer from dying.
Naturally, however, once her body was back in order, she saw opportunity and took it when she observed how Chase's body was changing and once had he lost a moment of control, it allowed her to notice that, despite what he said, he very much perceived that she was a woman.
From there, it was slight touches and temptations that comprised of her strategy to bring the man to his knees.
And just when she thought she was actually making some sort of progress, he adopts a scraggily mutt of a reptile off the street and instead of having the decency to eat it, he instead takes it in as his new apprentice!
Wuya used to come and go into his palace as she pleases, even linger for days on end in his elaborate and beautiful home. Now, she had been turned out multiple times, having to resort to sending Jack in just to irritate the man.
The act was getting out of hand. With all his attention either on non-Wu related world, dominating business (Wuya was never one for military enforcement) or training the stupid creature, Chase had seemed to forgotten that he was in heat, or that she could relieve him.
Well.
That was about to change.
She had gotten Chase to agree to a dinner tonight, to go over some Heylin issues, and she would use this opportunity to her advantage.
Wuya used a bit of her magic to change her appearance.
Lowering the neckline of her usual black dress, and shortening it enough that it was tempting for him, she decided that tonight was the night she would finally seduce Chase and claim the powerful Heylin emperor as her lover for. .
Well, for as long as it pleased her.
In the meantime, the same mutt of a reptile was slowly crawling along the hidden ledge of her current training room.
The room itself was pitch black. No light was permitted to enter.
The atmosphere of the room was thick. The air could be cut with a swish of a tail and Lan-Ying could feel the humidity settle in her lungs, making her feel like she was swimming rather than crawling.
Chase had mentioned something about training her to fight using her other senses, and she thought maybe he would make her wear a blindfold during their next session, but instead, she was quickly shown into this room early in the morning, and locked in.
The Heylin apprentice was not even aware of the other presences in the room until it was too late.
A kick had sent her flying into the wall, hard. After sliding down the wall, only to recieve another hit, she realized that she needed to get going and quickly.
In the back of her mind, she made a note to ask to see the room once the session was over, just to inspect if she had made a crater in the wall with her impact.
Over the course of the two hours since she had entered the room, she had been tossed around like a beanbag and shown no mercy.
Yet, since then she had been able to track his whereabouts better.
The subtle click of his feet against the floors, the sharp intake of breath before he would strike. Currently, she was crawling through the ledges, trying to get the jump on him. He was somewhere below her current position and she braced herself for her retaliation.
Chase Young had truly kept his word that their professional lives would be treated the same, despite the fact that afterwards, they would spend their free time doing more pleasurable activities.
Actually, she would argue that he had been a little harsher on her since their first mating. Although part of her thought that maybe he was trying to act as normal as possible during training and overdoing it as result, the more affectionate part of her thought it was because he wanted to be able to make sure she could take care of herself.
Such romantic thoughts fled out of her head as a chuckle echoed throughout the room.
" Hiding is the coward's way to fight, Lan-Ying"
She snarled at his tone, her response being to jump down and begin her final attack.
He must have heard her decent downwards, because she heard a movement that signaled a sharp turn.
However, he made the mistake she was counting on.
He braced himself for a frontal counterstrike, thinking she would drop down and land a hit directly.
Instead, while he protected his top, she landed quickly behind him and charged at his legs, knocking him off balance.
She only had a split second before he recovered, and chose to strike at that time. Lurching forward, she wound her body around him to constrict his arm movements.
He realized her plans, and tried to break free, but was stopped by a sharp pressure on his neck. Specifically, next to his jugular.
Without words, he understood her plan and relaxed his body in defeat.
It wasn't until the doors opened and the room flooded with light from the outside that she finally let go.
Looking at the figure in the door, she saw a large jaguar looking down at their in curiosity. Lan-Ying watched him bowed to her in greeting, before Mao turned his attention to Chase.
A form of communication connected them and Chase wordlessly dismissed Mao before turning to his apprentice.
Her first victory was rewarded with a small smile and she could not have been more elated if he had crowned her queen of the world.
" Well done, Lan-Ying. You are dismissed for the day," he said, moving to exit the room.
She nodded, before making her way to the hole she made in the side of the wall. She inspected it carefully, noticing some spots of blood and scale imbedded into the cracks
She was vaguely aware of a pain and wondered if she should let Mao know that she was injured, somewhere, but her pondering was interrupted by her master's reentrance.
" I am having a guest over for dinner. Your attendance is not mandatory, but it would be . . . appreciated."
He truly was taking her complaints to heart and including her in many of his meetings, whether it was dinner with all of his generals or small audiences with citizens of his territories. True, she was often mistaken as a pet, especially with his habit of stroking her head when she happened to be resting on the arms of his chair (in her defense she did not have a chair of her own in the throne room).
" I would be happy to join you, Master" she replied with a graceful inclination of her head.
Chase looked behind him, glancing at Mao, who had followed him back into the room, dismissing his presence.
Once the feline was gone and they were assured of their privacy, Chase leaned his head down, touching their foreheads and closing his eyes.
It was a restrained show of their connection, but one that surprised her.
" Chase?"
The moment was over as quickly as it had started and Chase had straightened himself, back to his regal looking self.
" The guest is a . . . . woman named Wuya. A Heylin ally. She is a handful to deal with and I cannot promise that this night will be pleasant. I ask that you take nothing she says to heart and ignore most of the conversation. Her advanced age has effect her brain, I believe."
Lan-Ying snorted, following him out into the hall.
" How old are you again, Chase?"
A smirk was his only response.
In their quarters, Lan-Ying was left to refresh herself while Chase oversaw the preparations.
While he walked her to the room, he noticed the injured part of her body, a large gash alone her spine.
He called for Mao to assist her before bidding her goodbye.
Alone in the room, she arranged herself in the bed, drifting off slightly as she waited for assistance with her wound.
Beneath her, the sheets still smelled of her and Chase, from their activities in the morning.
She had discovered that, in the early hours of the day, when no other creature was awake, Chase was alert and very eager for her attentions.
Basking in the memories, she did not hear the arrival of General Mao into the room.
She only noticed him when he had touched her shoulder gently, startling her from her reverie.
" Apologizes, my lady. I've only come to take care of your injury," he explained.
Lan-Ying rose and stretched, wincing at the feeling of the tight skin pulling.
" Of course. Please" she said, turning so he could have excess to her back.
She breathed in sharply at the feel of his hands roaming the gash, and then sighed at the cooling sensation of the salve.
The smell reminded her of green hills and peaceful afternoons, visions of someplace strange and familiar dancing in her head.
Mao often treated her wounds after training and used the same cream every time. Once, when she asked what it was, he only gave a smile and said it was an old Chinese recipe, used primarily by Buddhist monks for generations.
She hand no idea why, but the smell was a great comfort to her.
Once Mao had finished, he made sure she was comfortable in the bed.
" Lay down until dinner. The injury should be healed by then."
As he moved towards the door, Lan-Ying spoke up.
" General Mao?"
Noticing she had his attention, she continued.
" I was hoping you could tell me more about the guess tonight?"
Mao grimaced, highly unusual for the straight-faced man.
" Wuya is an ancient Heylin witch, very powerful and ill-tempered. She is a occasional nuisance that the lord puts up with."
Lowering his voice, he continued.
" It is best to just bared down and tolerate her, as we all do"
The blue-eyed dragon just smiled and watched as the man closed the door behind him, listening as footfalls turned into claws clicking against the floor.
The female vaguely wondered if she should be worried about dinner if every person, including Chase, was telling her to just stomach their guest and then forget about her.
Still, Mao had recommended she rest before tonight, so she curled into the soft cushions and drifted into a dreamless slumber.
Wuya reached the palace in record time, having using her magic to fly there quickly.
Smoothing down her dress, she made sure that, if and when she had the opportunity to bend over, her outfit would accentuate her curves while still leaving little to the imagination.
After all, the subtle approach went out the window during the Heylin warrior's seclusion.
Striding forward, she smirked as the doors parted ways for her and was met by two large cats.
" Ahh, Stein. Mao. How pretty your coats are" she cooed at them, as if they were docile house cats instead of large animals ready to attack if need be.
Neither creature said anything, only escorted her into the throne room as instructed.
Upon their entrance, they guided her in front of Chase's throne, where he sat, in all his finery, ready to receive her.
Chase raised his hand to dismiss the cats, standing and making his way to the Heylin witch.
" Wuya." he said in greeting.
The red-haired woman smiled, walking around him, half enjoying his form, half letting him enjoy hers.
" Chase Young. You look so well. I cannot put my finger on it, but something about you has changed," she said, circling his arm in hers, " you look different. Stronger." she purred, into his ears.
She completely missed the sneer he made at her and mistook his shiver of disgust for one of pleasure.
Smiling, she allowed herself to be lead into the formal dining room, ready for an intimate dinner . . .
. . . only to be disappointed to find a multitude of Chase's generals in their human form, as well as the annoying snake of a pet that had been absorbing most of the man's time.
The general all stood and waited calmly as the two powerful Heylins walked to their seats, the small dragon only standing once she realized everyone else was.
Wuya was satisfied to see the dragon look down in embarrassment.
The dinner passed by far to quickly for Wuya's likely. Chase ignored her comments of his body or her dress, moved away when she tried to touch him, and even refused to reply to any of her invited of moving to a more private location.
He even had the nerve to invite the nuisance of an apprentice into the conversation whenever possible.
When Chase pardoned himself to discuss matters with his generals and asked for the two females to wait for him in the throne room, she saw her opportunity to chase the little twit away for the night. They sat on the cushions that were located near the edge of the room.
" So. Lan-Ying was it?" she asked with a snake-like smile.
The blue dragon stared at her with an unwavering gaze.
With no reply, she continued.
" How is your training going, dearest?"
Lan-Ying looked uncomfortable to be left alone, but did not back down.
" Well, thank you."
The Heylin witch was displeased with her lack of response, and just watched her carefully.
The dragon kept looking towards the door, eager for her master's return.
It was then that Wuya had a sneaking suspicion why Chase was no longer in a desperate state of heat, and was calmer and colder than ever.
In any case, Lan-Ying was still a female, and Chase had more than one form.
Scooting her seat closer, she leaned in.
" Just between us girls, your master, Chase Young, is quite the specimen of a male. "
Lan-Ying snapped her head towards the women in surprise at the sudden change in topic.
"I . . . suppose so."
Wuya noticed the subtle changes in her demeanor. Stiffer back, increased heart rate, tail twitching.
The dragon was hiding something.
" And of course, he has had his fair share of beautiful conquests." Wuya continued.
" Trust me dear, I have been around for a long while. I have seen them come and go, all manner of women and creatures . . . "
That was a lie, of course. Chase kept his private life a fiercely protected secret and anyone who tried to pry was thoroughly punished.
" None last long, I am afraid. You see, with a man like that," she gestured to the doorway, where hushed whispers could be heard, " No one creature could satisfy him. Men like Chase have temporary flings, then get bored and abandon their passing fancy."
She could see that her words were affecting the dragon, as she began to slouch in her seat.
The damage was done, now all that was left to do was land the blow that would shatter her precious world.
Leaning back into her chair as if she did not have a care in the world, Wuya finished her attack.
" Of course, I know you don't need to be told this, dear. I am sure you have seen it for yourself, or at least will soon. After all, you are smarter than those kinds of females, and know that your place is as his apprentice. A creature like you could only ever appeal to one part of his self. His other parts," Wuya ran a hand down her waist, to her legs for emphasis, " can only be handled by a true woman."
Wuya could almost hear the glass break and chuckled in satisfaction.
Chase chose that moment to arrive.
" I apologize, I had an issue to resolve," he explained, signaling for them to rise out of their seats.
Lan-Ying could not move quickly enough, bowing to both before asking to be dismissed.
Chase allowed it, but his eyes followed her until she was out of the room.
Eager to bring his attention back to her, she moved close, pressing her breasts against him.
" Chase, the night is still young. Should we retire to your rooms for more private affairs?" she tempted with a sharp smile.
The man glanced down at her, and the air suddenly became thick with tension.
" No, we are done for the night. Besides, if we went there, we would disturb Lan-Ying if she were sleeping in the bed. The cats will escort you out."
Wuya could not believe he had dismissed her so quickly.
His remark about Lan-Ying being inside his bed did not hit her brain until she was back into her own lair.
Her shrieks could be heard miles away.
Dinner had gone about how he had expected.
Wuya was her usual mixture of inappropriate and rude, but for the sake of harmony among the members of the Heylin circle, he kept up appearances and allowed what he could.
Throughout the dinner, he noticed that, as much as Wuya angered him, Lan-Ying calmed him just as much.
Small glances in her direction to see her reactions to some of Wuya's more obvious implications, or hiding smirks as he felt her tail brush the side of his leg, all of it made the dinner with the witch that much more bearable. He planned on thoroughly enjoying her attentions that much more once he got rid of the unwanted company.
When he needed to discuss some important manners with his generals, he felt a mixed of relief, and weariness.
Gazing at his apprentice, he watched her awkwardly take a seat as far from Wuya as was possible without being rude, and gave her a look that promised he would be as quick as possible.
Looking back, it might have been a poor idea.
When he arrived back to the room, he took in the scene.
Wuya looked as poise and cocky as ever, sitting in her seat with her legs crossed.
Lan-Ying looked uncomfortable and tight. Like at any moment, she was ready to spring from her chair.
In fact, it must have taken great restraint for her to ask to be dismissed and say a farewell to Wuya before making her way back into their private quarters.
After his quick removal of the red-haired wench, he followed her path, stopping in his meeting room to grab a few scrolls to go over.
Opening the door slowly, he entered as quietly as possible, as to not startle the female if she was sleeping.
Instead of the bed, however, he found her in front of the large mirror placed in the corner of the room.
She stared at her reflection, analyzing her form. Turning this way and that, he watched as she frowned, standing on her legs and running her paws down her mid-section.
She looked thoroughly displeased, and he sought to rectify her issues.
Stepping behind her, he smoothed his hands along her arms, before grazing her stomach in gentle strokes.
" I was glad for your presences at dinner. However," he turned her to face him, " I would be much more happy to have your presences in bed."
She allowed herself to be dragged onto the bed, but when he went down in his usual starting move, biting down on her neck, he was surprised to have her roll away from him.
Raising an eyebrow in question, she shook her head at him.
"I am sorry. I am sore from training and my wound still hurts."
" You seemed fine at dinner. What could be bothering you?" he replied, sitting up right.
She gave a quick smile.
" Just suffering from some harsh training. Nothing I cannot handle."
For everything she was, she wasn't a good liar. Still, it was not in his nature to dig for answers. If it wasn't bothering her enough to tell him about it, then he wouldn't pry.
Reaching for his scrolls, he began returning correspondence to his officers away on missions.
He didn't miss, however, the way she made sure to fall asleep farther away than usual.
He pretended it didn't bother him.
Can you hear that? It is the sound of us getting closer to Lan-Ying discovering Chase isn't the only one with two forms :)
That also brings us closer to the first lemon, because let me tell you, once these two start, they are going to discover they really like each other.
That isn't to say that this is going to turn into a PWP, still so much plot to go through.
Still, thank you for all the support so far.
Read, review and enjoy, everybody.