Metamorphosis

Welcome back! Unfortunately, we're still sex-less, but I promise it'll be good when it gets here. I'm working on the story, I promise, and I'll upload more when I get it written. I had a bit of trouble writing this chapter, but I'm getting back in the groove of writing, so the next chapter shouldn't take so long to get out. Any comments you have are welcome. Enjoy!

Xayna

***

"Xayna, wake up. Oh, bother. Will this even wake you up?" I grumbled and shifted into a new position, burying my head farther under the blankets. I heard audible muttering and a hand pushed me back and forth, jostling me awake.

"Fine!" I grumbled. "Fine. I'm awake. Let go." Thankfully, the hand let go of me.

I sat up and rubbed the sleep out of my eyes. I looked up and saw Kira standing in front of me, wearing different clothes than she had been yesterday. Her red hair hung freely around her shoulders and her mouth was curled into a large smile.

"Good, now get up. If you sleep too much now, you won't sleep tonight." I yawned and stretched, pushing my arms above my head and curling my toes. "I'm going to teach you a little bit about how to talk out loud and I'm going to take your measurements so that we can sew you some clothes."

"What are measurements?" I asked groggily. "And what is sewing?"

"Sewing is how we make clothes. Measurements are, uh." Kira paused. "Measurements are how we tell what size things are. If you measure something, you're seeing how big or small it is."

"Oh," I said, somewhat confused.

Kira moved her head side to side. "It'll be easier to explain when I show you," she said. "Now, get up."

I slowly stood up, stretching again. She scrunched her nose at me and looked at me strangely. "You stink," she grumbled with amusement.

"I what?"

"You stink. You smell bad. You need a bath," she explained. I cocked my head to the side in confusion. "Baths are how you clean yourself. You did have to clean yourself as a dragon, right?"

"Yes, but only if I rolled in a pit of mud or something. I'd go down to the lake and then rub myself in grass or against the leaves of trees." I thought for a moment. "I didn't clean myself very often."

"As a human, you have to bathe often. I'll show you how to run a bath." She turned and walked away, going into a room down the hall. I followed behind her, my weight causing the wooden floor to creak.

I stopped just inside the door and looked around curiously. The room was longer than it was wide and an array of odd-looking objects were scattered about. "What is all of this?" I asked, moving around and touching various things.

"What you're touching now is a washbasin," she informed me. I ran my hand around the cream colored bowl. "You put water in it and wash your hands or your face."

I looked around the room. "Where's the water?" I asked confusedly.

"I use magic to bring it through this pipe." She gestured to a tall, metal device that was curved at the top to point down into a bowl large enough for me to sit in. I stared at her, dumbfounded.

"You can use magic?" I was awed, surprised, and disgruntled. How could humans use magic at will when dragons, who were obviously far superior, could only use magic when Telesia allowed it?

Kira giggled and said a few words out loud. They had a lilting, musical feel to them. A few moments later, water ran from the pipe into the large bowl. "Yes," she replied, smiling. "I take it that you can't, though?"

"Well, no, not really," I said slowly. "No, we only get to use magic when Telesia, the patron spirit of magic and reproduction, allows us to. Other than when we breathe fire or smoke, we only get to use magic when we gather together to give thanks to Telesia."

"That's strange," Kira muttered thoughtfully, staring absently at the empty washbasin. "We can use our magic any time we want. I suppose that will be on the list of things to teach you." She snapped out of her reverie and looked me up and down. "Come on, let's get you cleaned up." She then took me by the hand and pulled me away from the sink. "Take off your clothes."

I stood and looked at her curiously. "I thought humans didn't like to see each other naked."

She briefly covered her mouth with her hand and laughed. "Yes, that's true, but you can't get clean with your clothes on, so take them off."

I looked at her skeptically, but began to undress. While I was stripping down, she said a few words and stopped the water. After we were both finished, we stood in silence for a few moments. I was cold and the tips of the fleshy mounds on my chest crinkled up and hardened.

"Okay, you can get in now." Kira said, finally turning to look at me. She froze. She stared at my naked body, her gaze traveling everywhere with an odd expression on her face. I self-consciously moved to the bath and I saw Kira shake her head before turning away to mess with something beside the tub. I lifted my leg over and made sure I had good balance before I put my other leg in. I stood still, wondering what happened next.

Kira looked up at me and laughed. Her face was pink but her smile was infectious. "What? You told me to get in the bath." I figured that I must have been doing something wrong because she covered her mouth and giggled again.

"You sit in it," she told me. "So the water gets all over your body." Kira's eyes roamed over my body as I sat down, her face becoming pinker when I caught her looking.

"What do I do now?" I didn't how this would get me clean. There was no grass or trees for me to wipe myself on.

Kira held up a white block that looked whittled down at the edges. "You scrub yourself with this. It's a bar of soap. It will get all of the dirt and stuff off of you." I took the soap and stared at it mutely.

I looked up at Kira to find she was suppressing a smile. She slowly stood up and took off her shirt and bra. I looked unabashedly at her half-naked body. She was very curvy and the mounds on her chest looked bigger than mine. At the tips, she had dark circles with long, hard things sticking off the end. She stepped forward and took the bar of soap out of my hand.

"Here, you do it like this." She dipped the soap in the water and began rubbing the bar across my skin. She started with my chest and shoulders, naming off what she was washing as she went. She gently pushed me forward so she could reach my back and she massaged my muscles as she cleaned me. I found myself relaxing under her touch and I closed my eyes so I could savor the sensation. She splashed water onto my back before pulling me so I leaned against the tub. Then, she began washing my stomach.

She made giant swoops over my belly, still naming everything she touched. She paused for a moment before running the bar of soap gently against my breasts. At first, the contact was barely noticeable, but she grew bolder and soon was rubbing the slippery bar in circles on my chest. Her voice got deeper and huskier as she became emboldened and started washing my breasts in earnest. I watched as she rubbed the bar across the soft expanses of my chest and over my light pink nipples. They became hard at the slight contact and I had to suppress a shiver as she rubbed her free hand over my other breast in soft circles. She ran one finger across my soapy nipple and I looked into her face. Her breathing was shallow and her eyes were glued to my body. I looked back down as I felt her pinch my nipple between two fingers. I gasped and moaned at the sensation that traveled from my chest straight down to the junction between my thighs. That seemed to wake Kira up a bit and she quickly moved her hands from my boobs.

She worked her way down my legs and onto my feet, avoiding the aching spot in between my legs. She quickly washed my pussy, being gentle and thorough without alleviating the burning sensation that was slowly consuming my whole body. I wanted her to touch me. Since she wouldn't touch me, I reached down to touch myself but she caught my hand.

"Not now," she said, her voice husky and soft. She shook her head back and forth before standing up. She grabbed a towel and wiped off her hands and her forearms. "Stand up and dry off with this. You rub it over your body and it will soak up the moisture."

She turned away from me and began to put her clothes back on. She was wearing brown breeches that hung straight down from her curvy rear to her feet. They stopped a couple of inches above the ground, exposing her bare toes. Her shirt was dark blue and sleeveless and it clung tightly to her stomach and chest so I could see every curve. She ran her hand through her red hair and then handed me a fresh set of clothes to put on.

I quickly put on a black, supportive bra that didn't cover much of my breasts. It was a bit too big, but I didn't complain. The panties were plain and red, covering most of my ass, but hanging low over my mound. My pants, like hers, were dark brown, but unlike her my shirt was bright red and had short sleeves that barely covered my shoulders.

When I was finished, she nodded and smiled. "Let's go downstairs and get some food, shall we?" Her voice was bright and cheerful and she had plastered a carefree smile on her face. She turned and led me out of the bathroom and down into the kitchen.

She talked ceaselessly as she began cooking but I wasn't paying much attention to what she was saying. I was more concerned with what she was doing. She moved quickly and efficiently, as though she had practiced these exact moves a countless number of times. She sometimes faltered, though, as though something she said had caught her off guard. She also refused to look at me. She faced forward the entire time she was preparing our food. Once she was finished and had divvied everything up, she paused and took a deep breath. Then, still trying to avoid looking at me, she placed the food in front of and across from me and sat down.

"Go ahead and eat," she murmured. "It might be hot, though, so be careful." I slowly began eating, but I didn't taste my food. I kept my eyes locked on her as much as I possibly could. She kept her eyes down through the entire meal and didn't say a word.

When I had cleared the food off of my plate, I pushed it forward and sat back in my chair, crossing my arms. "Kira," I said forcefully. "Look at me." She slowly raised her eyes, a panicked look on her face. I leaned forward and reached across the table to hold her hand. She flinched when I touched her and pulled away. I didn't try to touch her again, but I left my hand where it was. "What's going on?" I asked seriously. "What's wrong?"

"N-nothing," she stuttered. "Nothing at all." She averted her eyes but I was having none of it.

"No, look at me." She looked back into my eyes and I nodded. "It's okay," I said, my voice softening. "Whatever it is. Just tell me what's wrong."

She glanced down briefly before bringing her eyes back to mine. "It's just... Don't mention what happened today in your bath to anyone, all right?" She spoke quietly, her voice barely more than a whisper. "That wasn't supposed to happen and it won't happen again." She looked away again with an expression on her face that I was unfamiliar with.

I leaned back in my chair again and watched her silently for a moment. "Okay," I said, nodding. "I won't tell anyone." I didn't understand what happened that was wrong, but I assumed it had something to do with her touching my breasts. Sadness washed over me; I really liked her touching me. Oh well, I thought. I'll just have to touch myself when I get a moment alone.

She nodded slowly and took our plates back over to another washbasin. She said a few words and water came up from a small pipe that arched over the bowl. She quickly cleaned our plates and silverware, placing them back in the cupboards she got them from.

"Okay," she said, turning to me once more with a bright smile back on her face. "It's time to work."

The next few hours flew by. First, Kira started talking to me both verbally and through our Link. Then, she'd speak a sentence verbally and ask me what she said. It took a while, but eventually I was able to equate most of the sounds with the words in my head. After that, she tried to get me to make a few sounds with my mouth, but my lips were like lead and my tongue was incapable of making such precise movements.

Eventually, I gave up and Kira pulled me into another room, this one full of cloth and other bits and pieces. She pulled out a coiled piece of cloth with odd looking lines and squiggles on it. She had me stand with my legs hip width apart and my arms lifted up and extended.

"This is measuring," she informed, me, wrapping the stiff cloth around my body in several different places. She then took a stick of wood and a piece of something square, thin, and white and made more lines and squiggles on it. She then showed me the cloth she was using. "These lines show me how much material I'm going to need to make your clothes." I nodded, understanding a little bit.

We spent the next few minutes in silence. The only time either one of us spoke is when she had me move this way or that. Once we were done, we went back out to the kitchen and got glasses of apple juice, a sweet drink apparently made from a fruit.

We were sitting in the living room, sipping our juice and talking when Patra came bustling through the front door holding a basket full of jars and cloths. Moisture was running down her face and her clothes had been all but soaked through.

I stood up and looked at her with worry. "Are you okay?" I threw the question at her with more intensity than I meant to. She jumped and stared at me with wide eyes. "Oh! I'm sorry," I said more calmly. I moved slowly toward her, not making any sudden movements. She remained firmly placed just inside the door. "I'm concerned for your well-being and was more forceful than I meant to be. I'm not angry and I'm not going to hurt you."

Her eyes slowly fell back into a more casual position and she loosened up enough to give me a halfhearted smile. "Yes, I'm fine, dear. Why would you think something is wrong?"

"You're leaking moisture." I was now close enough to reach up and touch her face. I ran my finger along the top of her brow and looked down at my now-wet fingertip.

Patra laughed and I looked up at her with curiosity. "I'm just sweating," she informed me. "That happens when we get too warm or are working hard. It cools us down."

I looked back down at my finger and put it under my nose. It didn't smell like anything so I put it to my mouth. I licked the sweat off and marveled at the taste. It was slightly bitter and I stored that information for some time when I'd need it.

"Oh, eew," Kira muttered out loud. "That's just gross."

"It's really not so bad." I replied, turning toward where she was sitting in the living room. "I mean, I wouldn't want to drink a cup of it, but it would be good to use for seasoning."

Patra burst out laughing and Kira looked at me as though I was crazy. "That is one of the most disgusting things I have ever heard." Patra continued to laugh and I turned to see that she had put her basket down and was doubled over with her hands on her knees.

"You, child, are more than I can handle." She looked at me and put her hand on my shoulder. "Using sweat for seasoning. Hah!" She chuckled as she bent to pick up her basket.

"I'm going to put my things away. Mrs. Nessle finally had her baby today and getting that little sucker out was as difficult as her pregnancy has been." She threw her free hand in the air. "I don't know what it is about the women in that family, but they cannot have easy deliveries." She walked back toward the kitchen, muttering about pregnancies and babies.

Kira stood and stretched her arms out. "Okay, it's time to go outside and get some exercise. Sun's going to be going down in a bit, but I can show you some of the forest outside of town."

I nodded enthusiastically. I loved being out in nature. There was so much to see and so many things to eat.

We deposited our empty glasses in the kitchen and I followed Kira out the back door. I looked around in wonder at all the things humans had built. "Wow," I murmured. All around were tall buildings and people milling around. Once the villagers caught sight of me, they would stop and stare. The buzz of the town slowly faded into a muted whisper.

"Come on," Kira muttered, pulling on my hand. "We'll deal with them later." She pulled me away from the people and toward the edge of town. When we had passed the last building, Kira dropped my hand. "Stupid, nosy, ignorant buggers. They need to mind their own business and stop talking like bloody morons."

I raised my eyebrows. "It's natural to be curious, Kira." I said conversationally. "I mean, I was a dragon and when I came into town, I was dropped off by a dragon, which they've never seen before. Not to mention the fact that I was very weak and almost sick."

She turned to me. "Yeah, but you haven't heard what they've been saying. My family has talked with you and they understand, but the villagers think you're some sort of demon. They think you're just here to torture and kill us all." She threw up her hands and then put them on her hips. "It's bloody ignorant is what it is. But will they listen to us? No. They just mutter to each other and make the whole thing sound worse than it really is." Kira had fire in her green eyes and I moved forward to put a hand on her shoulder.

"It's okay, really," I said soothingly. "I'm not worried about it. For months now, I've been the talk of the construct, so I'm used to people staring. Granted, dragons can't whisper, so that's a bit unnerving, but their talking doesn't phase me. You shouldn't let it bother you, either."

Kira looked at me uncertainly. "I guess. They really should get to know you before they judge you like that, though."

"We haven't given them a chance to get to know me yet. I know it'll take a while, but we could start out simply. Have some people over for dinner and let them see that I'm harmless." I shrugged my shoulders.

"I suppose that could work. I'll talk to Mamma and Papa about it." She looked at the sky which was glowing bright orange. "Come on, we should get going before it gets too dark." I smiled and followed as Kira turned and headed out to the woods.

Walking in the dense timber was a test of my dexterity. I had gotten used to walking and was able to balance normally, but watching where I stepped and trying not to fall was extremely difficult. Kira was kind enough to hold back laughter when I tried to jump over a small stream of water and fell in instead. I managed to land on my hands and knees, though, so I wasn't completely drenched.

We walked for what seemed like an eternity before we finally reached a clearing. The absence of trees was rather shocking after having spent a good deal of time surrounded by a dense forest. The grass was yellow and it swayed around my knees.

The clearing was perfectly round and big enough for two full grown dragons to lie in comfortably. To our left were a cluster of stones fashioned into a bench of sorts. Cutting through the tall grass across the clearing from us was a small stream with a simple but beautiful stone bridge arching over it.

"We have to leave," Kira said quietly, breaking the silence. "But I wanted to show you this was here. For my tenth birthday, my father and a few of the men from town pulled the stones in to make the bench and constructed the bridge for me. Sometimes I come out here with a journal and write for hours. It's peaceful and relaxing."

I turned to look at my companion. She was watching the empty patch of land with a look of peaceful fondness on her face. I smiled and looked back at the land, appreciating its beauty.

Beside me, my partner straightened up and turned to me. "Okay," she said a bit more loudly. "We should be getting back. It's going to be dark soon and you're going to want to get out of those clothes."