As the winter months started to set in, Zelena went flying less and constructed a large barn for her beloved steed, complete with his own nest, food and water troughs that magically replenished themselves and a hot spring. She did start riding a little more once Mal brought out her unicorn, now fully grown. They would ride for hours through the chilly forest and return to the farmhouse or the dragon mansion to cuddle and eat something warm. She was still adjusting to this new affection thing. Mal no longer greeted her with a simple hey or hello. She would always touch Zelena's hand and pulled her close so their foreheads could touch. Sometimes she even kissed it. Zelena was unsure of how exactly to reciprocate such tender gestures, but Mal didn't seem deterred by her inexperience. The dragon was nearby at all times. Regina was on her almost all the time, but Zelena never intervened. Maleficent was not exactly hers to defend, and although she knew there was still some attraction between the dragon and the queen, Maleficent never acted on it. She still felt as though one day she would wake up and Mal would have found someone better, someone that could give her all she desired and so much more, all the things Zelena would never be able to give her. She did not feel like she was deserving of such genuine affection, and yet...she couldn't help adoring the feeling all the same.

Zelena had been riding out to the frozen river to watch the latest Scary Dragon Bitch lesson. Mal and and Lily were flying low over the forest, the queen leading the way through a series of maneuvers that Lily was instructed to follow. She loved watching the dragons fly, displaying their aerial prowess, but she started to notice the shaking of Lily's wings as she struggled to keep pace with her mother. Mal called out to her and the young dragon tried to adjust, but the wind caught at the wrong moment and she was thrown off course. She shifted on instinct, screaming as she plummeted down to the frozen water. But her mother was there. Zelena breathed a sigh of relief as Mal swooped down and grabbed Lily, coiling her entire body around her previous child, only to slam into the lake, bouncing twice, shattering the ice and barrelling into the bank with a hard crash that shook the forest. "Mal!" Zelena quickly dismounted and teleported herself straight to the fallen queen. "Mal? Please be alright?" She didn't even recognize the terror she could hear in her own voice, or the sinking feeling in her heart at the thought of her dragon being hurt. Mal slowly unfurled herself with a deep groan and Lily crawled away unscathed. Maleficent shifted back into human form and Zelena knelt next to her. "Are you alright?"

"Ugh, yeah, I think so. Just a little sore. Lilith, you know I was dead a few months ago, take it easy."

"Sorry Mom, are you okay?" Lily asked.

"I'm getting too old for this." Mal groaned. Zelena and Lily moved around to help her to her feet. "I think that's enough for today."

"You want me to heal you and take you back to the house?" Her daughter asked.

"No, you go find Ruby and go curl up somewhere. I can still hear your heart pounding." Lily turned red at her words, clearly having been terrified of falling to her death.

"Then you're coming with me." Zelena said firmly. "I have a remedy for this since you don't want to be healed."

"Does it involve you lying naked and covered in honey?"

Zelena hit her in the back, making her yelp. "I thought you almost died and you're making jokes." She hissed.

"Sorry, dear, but please refrain from hitting me again. I happen to like you, I would hate to have to eat you." Mal retorted as Zelena teleported them away to the farmhouse. She helped the blonde through the house where she collapsed gracelessly onto the bed, continuing to complain about her back. Zelena rolled her eyes and went to retrieve her witchcraft kit, returning to find that the dragon had rolled onto her back. "Do you want to give me a back massage, dear?" Mal called with a smirk.

"You could be faking it." Zelena countered, removing the small amount of white powder from the kit and rubbing her hands in it. She breathed a word of magic over her palm and rubbed them together as she climbed onto the bed. Mal suddenly made her shirt disappear, nearly making her fall back off the bed.

"Something wrong?" Mal raised her head.

"You are really trying to get me into bed with you, aren't you?"

"Maybe. You're taking your sweet time though." She laid her head back down and Zelena straddled the back of her thighs, careful not to put too much weight on her aching dragon, and started to massage. Maleficent winced and Zelena changed position to knead her shoulders. The powder on her hands heated and cooled simultaneously as she carefully and meticulously worked loose the dragon's muscles in her neck. Mal let out a deep catlike purr as her eyes slowly closed. Mal was so soft to the touch and so warm. Zelena paused for a moment to trace the intricately beautiful orchid tattoo, imagining what the dragon would like with nothing on at all. She quickly shook off those thoughts and got back to work. She knew Lily was an inexperienced flye, but she'd only fallen once, and for Mal to have such a heavy fall as she had...she wished she hadn't been there to actually see it. Especially hearing her crack the ice...Zelena shuddered. Nevertheless, she enjoyed feeling the silky surface of Mal's skin beneath her fingertips as she started to move lower. The dragon sorceress became more vocal in this particular region, sighing when knots were loosened and hissing in pain when the witch touched a sensitive area or one that ached upon being massaged. Zelena continued her work silently and diligently, wanting to do a good job so Mal could feel better. As the last kink came undone, Maleficent let out a long sigh and her entire body relaxed. "Thank you, little witch. That was sorely needed."

Zelena smiled and blew away the rest of the magic powder. "Why don't I pop us some popcorn and put on a movie?"

"Sounds lovely. Just not any of those movies with all the singing. I can't stand singing."

Zelena laughed and headed into the living room, magically lighting a fire in the heart and turning on the tv and dvd player. She magically popped the popcorn, one of this world's many treats favored by the dragons, and put on the new Maleficent movie. Mal came in a moment later and Zelena had her lay on the couch, sliding a heating pad under her back and quickly cuddled up in her side. She quickly found that she enjoyed cuddling. Mal seemed to like it as well and over the last few weeks, the witch had fallen asleep in her arms on more than one occasion. It was strange, accepting a relationship unlike any she'd had before. She was still afraid of doing something wrong and screwing everything up, but based upon Mal's actions day in and day out, comforting her, cuddling with her, telling her that she was beautiful...she almost wanted to cry sometimes. Zelena glanced down at her charm bracelet, a thing she hardly went without nowadays. "I was very worried for you today."

Mal smirked and kissed her head. "You should've seen the time I barrel rolled into the wall of a castle. I wish I had your magic hands then."

"My heart nearly stopped." Zelena whispered.

Mal tilted her head back to look her in the eye. "Zelena, I'm terribly sorry for worrying you, but I would do what I did again in a heartbeat to protect Lily. She's my child, and I will always try to catch her, even if...one of us never gets up from the fall." Zelena yanked her head away, suddenly feeling sick at the thought of losing the dragon. "I would do the same for you, Zelena, whether you choose to believe so or not. You are precious to me, little witch. I will never leave you alone."

"Don't ever try to save me. If it's between your life and mine, don't-"

"I will not promise that. I can't. I refuse. You trust me, yes?"

"Yes."

"Then trust me to take care of those I care about, including myself. Trust me to come back to you."

Zelena let out a shaky breath and buried her head into Mal's neck. "Okay. I trust you, Mal."

"Excellent." She could practically hear the dragon smirking. "Son of a-" Zelena raised her head and found the dragon glaring at the screen. "Who the fuck wrote this? I don't have wings!" Zelena could nothing but laugh.

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