Western 14

[7/16/2018 10:04:52 PM] Ash: You guys all pile onto a train headed even further west.

[7/16/2018 10:07:31 PM] Ash: It's a nice train, though, and you get nice accomodations. Anya and Theo have a lot of money they don't mind tossing around.

[7/16/2018 10:07:38 PM] Ash: Because crooks.

[7/16/2018 10:10:10 PM] *** Jo very much appreciates this, and once again asks to stay with Theo. ***

[7/16/2018 10:13:13 PM] Ash: Sofia pouts a bit. ".... aww.  I wanted to stay with you."

[7/16/2018 10:13:41 PM] *** Jo smiles. ***

[7/16/2018 10:14:05 PM] Jo: You can visit, you know. I am sure there are seats enough for all of us in one compartment, just not, er… beds.

[7/16/2018 10:14:50 PM] Ash: Sofia:  Okay. I'll stay with Anya.

[7/16/2018 10:15:00 PM] Ash: Anya:  No, Anya is staying by herself. Stay with Caspar.

[7/16/2018 10:16:36 PM] Jo: I'm sure Cas doesn't mind.

[7/16/2018 10:16:47 PM] Jo: We might need fake wedding rings, however.

[7/16/2018 10:20:14 PM] Ash: Theo:  Think so?

[7/16/2018 10:20:33 PM] Ash: Sofia gasps. "For who?"

[7/16/2018 10:21:01 PM] Jo: Me and you. Men don't usually have them.

[7/16/2018 10:21:46 PM] Ash: Sofia:  Are we marrying each other? It's rather sudden, but yes.

[7/16/2018 10:22:12 PM] Jo: No, just pretending to be married to Crafter and Cas.

[7/16/2018 10:23:25 PM] Ash: Sofia:  Oh! Okay.

[7/16/2018 10:24:08 PM] Ash: She beams at Cas an takes his arm. "Helloooooo.... husband," she mumurs in a voice that would make any heterosexual man wilt.

[7/16/2018 10:24:28 PM] Jo: Exactly like that, very good.

[7/16/2018 10:26:37 PM] Ash: Casper:  Ah, a fake marriage to a beautiful woman, just what my father always wanted for me.

[7/16/2018 10:26:41 PM] Ash: Sofia:  Yay!

[7/16/2018 10:26:55 PM] Jo: Just be glad it is fake.

[7/16/2018 10:28:33 PM] Ash: Casper:  That's true.

[7/16/2018 10:29:14 PM] *** Jo conjures a ring for herself and one for Sofia. ***

[7/16/2018 10:29:56 PM] Ash: Sofia beams and puts it on.

[7/16/2018 10:30:41 PM] Jo: And I shall be Mrs. Crafter. I do not think I can manage an American accent, however.

[7/16/2018 10:30:41 PM] Ash: Anya:  ... the skull can stay with me. He doesn't take up much room.

[7/16/2018 10:31:01 PM] Ash: Francisco:  Some people call that my best feature!

[7/16/2018 10:31:09 PM] Jo: They haven't heard your singing voice.

[7/16/2018 10:31:47 PM] Ash: Francisco:  And all without lungs!

[7/16/2018 10:32:29 PM] Jo: You are amazing.

[7/16/2018 10:36:38 PM] Ash: So! You get loaded onto the train with your luggage. Or, Cas and your luggage. The others don't have any, and Francisco is luggage. He counts as it, anyway.

[7/16/2018 10:37:24 PM] *** Jo snogs Theo as soon as their stuff is safely stowed, because of course she does. ***

[7/16/2018 10:39:11 PM] Ash: It's a nice little stateroom! But he kisses back.

[7/16/2018 10:39:30 PM] Ash: Theo:  ... we met on a train.

[7/16/2018 10:39:39 PM] Ash: Theo:  On top of one.

[7/16/2018 10:40:08 PM] Jo: That is very true. I thought for sure I would fall off.

[7/16/2018 10:41:48 PM] Ash: Theo:  It's even trickier aiming a rifle on top of a train. I suppose one gets used to it.

[7/16/2018 10:44:48 PM] Jo: It was very romantic.

[7/16/2018 10:45:06 PM] Ash: Theo:  Dragons are very romantic.

[7/16/2018 10:45:44 PM] Jo: Are you?

[7/16/2018 10:46:22 PM] Ash: Theo:  I just mean... conceptually. I might not be good at romance.

[7/16/2018 10:48:56 PM] Jo: No? Why do you think so?

[7/16/2018 10:49:42 PM] Ash: Theo:  It's a complicated system of social cues. And I'm usually good at systems. Not so good at social.

[7/16/2018 10:52:19 PM] Ash: Theo:   Other people add lots of complicated variables.

[7/16/2018 10:53:59 PM] Jo: You seem to be able to navigate me remarkably well.

[7/16/2018 10:56:34 PM] Ash: Theo:  .... helps that you want me to navigate you.

[7/16/2018 10:56:41 PM] Ash: Theo:  ... does that sound prurient?

[7/16/2018 10:56:57 PM] Jo: It does! I like it.

[7/16/2018 11:05:35 PM] Ash: Theo:  Good, I was trying.

[7/16/2018 11:06:08 PM] Jo: See, you're not bad at this at all!

[7/16/2018 11:08:31 PM] Ash: Theo:  Innuendo is very easy to do accidentally, I've found.

[7/16/2018 11:10:57 PM] Jo: And deliberately as well.

[7/16/2018 11:11:04 PM] Jo: How much practice have you had?

[7/16/2018 11:11:53 PM] Ash: Theo:  Especially with technical jargon. Accidental? A lot.

[7/16/2018 11:12:37 PM] Jo: Oh no, I mean deliberate. Practice with romance.

[7/16/2018 11:13:29 PM] Ash:  Theo:    Very little.

[7/16/2018 11:13:55 PM] Jo: Dozens, then, not hundreds.

[7/16/2018 11:14:36 PM] Ash: Theo:  two.

[7/16/2018 11:15:48 PM] Jo: Two dozen? That is all? Really? … how have you managed to escape pursuit?

[7/16/2018 11:16:23 PM] Ash: Theo: two people.

[7/16/2018 11:17:24 PM] Jo: ... are you sure?

[7/16/2018 11:19:16 PM] Ash: Theo:  I’m sure. I’m not counting attempted fae courtships.

[7/16/2018 11:19:39 PM] Jo: Ohhh, no wonder. How many does that add up to, then?

[7/16/2018 11:20:00 PM] Ash: Theo:  seven? Seven.

[7/16/2018 11:20:20 PM] *** Jo eyes him. ***

[7/16/2018 11:20:25 PM] Jo: Where have you been hiding?

[7/16/2018 11:23:15 PM] Ash: Theo:  Dragons are not particularly desirable consorts among the Fae. They prefer us as guard dogs and hunting prey.

[7/16/2018 11:23:54 PM] Jo: You are certainly not a dog, darling.

[7/16/2018 11:24:32 PM] Ash: Theo:  figurative.

[7/16/2018 11:25:38 PM] Jo: I know, but even so.

[7/16/2018 11:25:45 PM | Edited 11:26:09 PM] Jo: Why did you turn them down?

[7/16/2018 11:26:16 PM] Ash: Theo:  the suitors?

[7/16/2018 11:27:58 PM] Ash: Theo:  most of them had ulterior motives for wanting a Dragon for a husband.

[7/16/2018 11:29:14 PM] Jo: Like what?

[7/16/2018 11:30:39 PM] Ash: Theo:  Lady Idress of the Thirteen Thorns wanted dragonblooded heirs.

[7/16/2018 11:31:36 PM] Ash: Theo:  Marchioness Fidaela wanted to spite her controlling father.

[7/16/2018 11:32:06 PM] Ash: Theo: Who was a famed Dragonhunter.

[7/16/2018 11:32:58 PM] Jo: Wait, people hunt dragons?

[7/16/2018 11:33:06 PM] Jo: Fey hunt dragons?

[7/16/2018 11:33:11 PM] Jo: Why?

[7/16/2018 11:34:30 PM] Ash: Theo:   Challenging prey mostly.

[7/16/2018 11:35:06 PM] Jo: But you're people.

[7/16/2018 11:36:42 PM] Ash: Theo:  these are fae we’re talking about.

[7/16/2018 11:42:56 PM] Jo: ... sorry, I just can't... imagine doing that.

[7/16/2018 11:44:37 PM] Jo: ... what do you think my ulterior motives are, hm?

[7/16/2018 11:57:14 PM] Ash: Theo:  these are fae we’re talking about.

[7/18/2018 9:11:44 PM] Ash: Theo:  I haven't really thought about it. I don't actually know enough about demonkind to extrapolate based on that. And I find you, personally, pretty inscrutable. I like it.

[7/18/2018 9:14:14 PM] Jo: But I'm practically transparent. … I thought.

[7/18/2018 9:16:39 PM] Ash: Theo:  Sometimes, int he short term, but only because you make it very clear what you want.

[7/18/2018 9:17:27 PM] Jo: That usually makes it easier to get what I want.

[7/18/2018 9:19:30 PM] Ash: Theo:  So it's not the same as you being transparent.

[7/18/2018 9:23:17 PM] Jo: What about the other suitors?

[7/18/2018 9:26:58 PM] Ash: Theo:  Just... more of the same. All transparent, all wanting something.

[7/18/2018 9:27:24 PM] Jo: Well, I certainly can't say I don't want something.

[7/18/2018 9:27:46 PM] Ash: Theo:  Something only tangentially having to do with me, I mean.

[7/18/2018 9:30:52 PM] Jo: Odd people.

[7/18/2018 9:33:22 PM] Jo: I cannot imagine.

[7/18/2018 9:34:01 PM] *** Jo twines her arms around him a bit. ***

[7/18/2018 9:39:14 PM] Ash: Theo:  Thus, here we are. Dragons are not.... terribly looked upon fondly in Fae.

[7/18/2018 9:39:40 PM] Jo: Why is that? You seem all right to me.

[7/18/2018 9:46:01 PM] Jo: And you're rather clearly people.

[7/18/2018 9:46:25 PM] Ash: THeo:  THat really doesn't matter as much to the Fae as you might think. I think they have a hard time telling.

[7/18/2018 9:47:13 PM] Jo: I don't.

[7/18/2018 9:53:25 PM | Edited 9:54:00 PM] Ash: Theo smiles, a little. "You don't.

[7/18/2018 9:54:17 PM] Jo: I think dragons are very romantic.

[7/18/2018 9:54:23 PM] *** Jo snogs him, with intent! ***

[7/18/2018 9:57:58 PM] Ash: He snogs back! Matching intent!

[7/18/2018 9:59:04 PM] Jo: ((Definitely a curtain, then!))

[7/18/2018 10:09:18 PM] Ash: Indeed!

[7/18/2018 10:09:35 PM] Ash: And let's play. We got to play a little, at least. More tomorrow!

[7/18/2018 10:11:13 PM] Jo: ((Okay!))

[7/19/2018 6:49:57 PM] Ash: So! You're on a train, headed west to Crescent City. Outside, it's starting to look awful Wild West outside. Dusty badlands and rolling fields.

[7/19/2018 6:50:53 PM] *** Jo looks out the window and puts her clothes back on. ***

[7/19/2018 6:51:00 PM] Jo: It's rather flat, isn't it?

[7/19/2018 6:59:27 PM] Ash: Theo looks out the window from the small bed. "IT tends to be rather flat here, yes.  And it seems to go on forever, sometimes.    When you're used to England, it can be quite a change, I understand."

[7/19/2018 7:00:41 PM] Jo: The colors are different.

[7/19/2018 7:03:21 PM] Ash: Theo:  Red, brown and orange. Some greens.

[7/19/2018 7:07:28 PM] Jo: Very beautiful.

[7/19/2018 7:07:31 PM] Jo: It looks dry.

[7/19/2018 7:18:35 PM] Ash: Theo:  It is. There's plenty of rivers and water sources, but there's just.... a lot more land to cover here.

[7/19/2018 7:19:18 PM] Ash: It's about mid morning, at this point, and the train is thundering across a plain at the moment.

[7/19/2018 7:19:36 PM] Jo: How long have you lived here?

[7/19/2018 7:21:38 PM] Ash: Theo:  A year. This is where I ended up when I escaped Fae. Well, not far from here, anyway.

[7/19/2018 7:22:43 PM] Jo: And you just stayed?

[7/19/2018 7:32:41 PM] Ash: Theo:  Sure. I landed in a town North of here, a bit. North and east. THey were kind to me,, helped me recover. I also found that this area is full of wild magic. Can you feel it?

[7/19/2018 7:35:56 PM] *** Jo goes quiet and "listens." ***

[7/19/2018 7:37:19 PM] Ash: You do feel it! There's a charge in the air here, and it's not demonic energy, or fae energy -- just magic. Raw, and wild.

[7/19/2018 7:38:21 PM] Jo: That could be rather worryingly powerful, couldn't it?

[7/19/2018 7:44:01 PM] Ash: Theo:  It could. Rifts open here all the time -- I fell through one. There are more than a few dragons that lair out here.

[7/19/2018 7:44:08 PM] Ash: He points at his chest.

[7/19/2018 7:48:36 PM] Ash: Theo:  Besides me and Anya.

[7/19/2018 7:49:51 PM | Edited 7:59:10 PM] Ash: Theo:  Other creatures slither out of Fae or Hell out here, too. There were a bunch of Half-Demons and Warlocks that ran rampant around this area for a long time.

[7/19/2018 8:53:49 PM] Jo: What happened to them?

[7/19/2018 8:55:37 PM] Ash: Oh, they were eventually run off by the town they were terrorizing.

[7/19/2018 8:56:05 PM] Ash: Theo:  Their leader died, they just kind of fell apart.

[7/19/2018 8:56:33 PM] Jo: Good.

[7/19/2018 8:57:28 PM] Ash: Theo:  They've had some issues with his old gang, but nothing like it used to be.

[7/19/2018 8:58:37 PM] Jo: What sort of... issues?

[7/19/2018 9:02:22 PM] Ash: Theo:  This is all second hand, but from what I understand,  a few of them tried starting gangs of their own.

[7/19/2018 9:07:45 PM] Jo: It spread.

[7/19/2018 9:16:40 PM] Ash: Theo:  None of them were terribly successful.

[7/19/2018 9:19:46 PM] Jo: Thankfully, I suspect.

[7/19/2018 9:22:43 PM] Ash: Theo:  Four warlocks are bad news.

[7/19/2018 9:23:27 PM] Jo: Most warlocks are bad news, really.

[7/19/2018 9:24:44 PM] Ash: Theo:  Three of them are dead. All by the same woman, apparently, so.

[7/19/2018 9:25:26 PM] Jo: What about the last one?

[7/19/2018 9:28:43 PM] Ash: Theo:  Not sure yet. The gang ran rampant before I showed up, so I don't know who they were or where they disappeared from.

[7/19/2018 9:30:01 PM] Jo: Ever had any trouble with rival gangs?

[7/19/2018 9:30:15 PM] Ash: Theo:  Most definitely.

[7/19/2018 9:30:38 PM] Ash: Theo:  I ran up against Harrow's gang more than a few times. Harrow was one of the warlocks.

[7/19/2018 9:30:57 PM] Jo: What happened?

[7/19/2018 9:35:31 PM] Ash: Theo:  We hit the same train. It was awkward. He was pretty powerful, we ended up expending more energy protecting the people than anything else.

[7/19/2018 9:36:04 PM] *** Jo smiles, leans over and kisses him on the forehead. ***

[7/19/2018 9:36:09 PM] Jo: You really are rather lovely.

[7/19/2018 9:45:16 PM] Ash: Theo: … I mean, we still stole some stuff. But we're not murderers.

[7/19/2018 9:46:28 PM] Jo: What did you steal that time?

[7/19/2018 9:47:36 PM] Ash: Theo:  Some tomes, mostly.

[7/19/2018 9:51:31 PM] Jo: Magical ones? What were they?

[7/19/2018 9:52:34 PM] Ash: Theo thinks. "It was Saviche's Arcane Panoply, and Instread's Footnotes."

[7/19/2018 9:53:07 PM] Jo: A copy of Footnotes still exists?

[7/19/2018 9:53:29 PM] Ash: Theo:  It turned out to be a fake.

[7/19/2018 9:53:51 PM] Jo: Thank goodness. I don't think I've heard of Arcane Panoply?

[7/19/2018 9:54:14 PM] Ash: Theo:  It's a collection of weather charms.

[7/19/2018 9:54:46 PM] Jo: What was the problem with it?

[7/19/2018 10:00:34 PM] Ash: Theo:  Only about half of them worked.

[7/19/2018 10:00:59 PM] Ash: Theo:  Weather is such a complicated system, tampering with it is very risky.

[7/19/2018 10:01:27 PM] Jo: Most people know that by now, surely.

[7/19/2018 10:01:41 PM] Ash: Theo:  You'd be surprised.

[7/19/2018 10:05:00 PM] Jo: Don't most people who try weather spells get killed by them?

[7/19/2018 10:07:31 PM] Ash: Theo:  Or drowning their towns.

[7/19/2018 10:08:11 PM] Jo: Well, yes.

[7/19/2018 10:08:27 PM] Jo: Lightning and tornados are a bit more common.

[7/19/2018 10:13:05 PM] Ash: Theo:  In any case, that's what we were there for. I suspect Harrow was after the Footnotes, too.

[7/19/2018 10:13:55 PM] Jo: Even a fake could be dangerous.

[7/19/2018 10:15:04 PM | Edited 10:15:36 PM] Ash: Theo laughs. "In this case, it was baking recipes just translated into Aramethean.

[7/19/2018 10:15:32 PM] Jo: Oh, not so bad, then!

[7/19/2018 10:18:07 PM] Ash: Theo:  The banana bread didn't rise, that's the worst thing.

[7/19/2018 10:18:24 PM] Jo: You tried it?

[7/19/2018 10:19:49 PM] Ash: Theo:  Of course.

[7/19/2018 10:24:40 PM] Ash: Theo:  Apparently some enterprising conman made some would-be Wizard very happy about his rare find, and got very rich in the process.

[7/19/2018 10:25:35 PM] Jo: I do love a happy ending.

[7/19/2018 10:26:28 PM] Ash: Theo:  It was a close thing, though. Harrow was very good at the pain spells.

[7/19/2018 10:27:00 PM] Jo: Ugh.

[7/19/2018 10:28:21 PM] Ash: He wasn't expecting two dragons, though.

[7/19/2018 10:28:51 PM] Ash: Theo:  … that becomes an advantage in many altercations, we find.

[7/19/2018 10:29:26 PM] Jo: Indeed. Until quite recently I never expected one dragon, let alone two.

[7/19/2018 10:31:05 PM] Ash: Theo:  Anya is practically two.

[7/19/2018 10:31:31 PM] Jo: Two heads, I cannot imagine how that must feel.

[7/19/2018 10:32:25 PM] Ash: Theo:  You should try it at some point, just to see what it's like.

[7/19/2018 10:33:02 PM] Jo: Have you?

[7/19/2018 10:34:10 PM] Jo: I do enjoy trying new things.

[7/19/2018 10:34:36 PM] Ash: Theo:  I can't shapechange.

[7/19/2018 10:36:15 PM] Jo: I really don't understand how that works.

[7/19/2018 10:36:58 PM] Jo: You're a man regardless, but you certainly seem like a human one now and a dragon one other times.

[7/19/2018 10:42:57 PM] Ash: Theo:  I'm.... always a dragon. I just have a glamour. I put it on, everyone perceives me as human. Even reality.

[7/19/2018 10:44:11 PM] Jo: So when I touch you, you always feel it through scales?

[7/19/2018 10:44:26 PM] Ash: Theo nods.

[7/19/2018 10:44:58 PM] Jo: … would you like to try skin?

[7/19/2018 10:45:17 PM] Ash: THeo:  …. I've always been curious.

[7/19/2018 10:46:44 PM] Jo: Let me into your head.

[7/19/2018 10:46:56 PM] Ash: Theo nods, and does!

[7/19/2018 10:48:18 PM] *** Jo taps him into her own nervous system, more or less, to let him feel what she feels. ***

[7/19/2018 10:51:22 PM] Ash: Theo's eyes widen. ".. this is strange."

[7/19/2018 10:52:00 PM] Jo: I imagine so!

[7/19/2018 10:52:22 PM] Jo: Try touching me, if you can stand the double-mental-vision, so to speak.

[7/19/2018 10:52:46 PM] Ash: He does so, trying to put his hand on your back.

[7/19/2018 10:57:00 PM] *** Jo kisses him, and he probably gets a whole storm of feelings from that, physical and emotional. ***

[7/19/2018 10:57:34 PM] Ash: Theo:  … wow. That is.... heady. Pardon the pun.

[7/19/2018 10:59:43 PM] Jo: Skin's quite sensitive.

[7/19/2018 11:03:28 PM] Ash: Theo:  My scales are very sensitive more than you might think, but it's not quite like this.

[7/19/2018 11:05:40 PM] Jo: I can tell. I'm not trying to pick it up, but it does go a bit both ways.

[7/19/2018 11:08:14 PM] Ash: She does get a lot of affection toward her, and heavy emotions she can tell he's still processing and trying to figure out.

[7/19/2018 11:11:17 PM] Jo: I am trying to damp it down for the sake of your privacy, but there's quite a bit going on with two bodies.

[7/19/2018 11:17:26 PM] Ash: Theo:  I don't have a lot to hide from you.

[7/19/2018 11:18:33 PM] Jo: Thankfully! One's mind can only stretch so far...

[7/19/2018 11:19:06 PM] *** Jo kisses him again. ***

[7/19/2018 11:21:22 PM] Ash: There's a very nice echo chamber effect that goes back and forth between you both, affection and lust bouncing back and forth.

[7/19/2018 11:22:26 PM] *** Jo is also terribly curious, and definitely tries to drag that to a curtaining situation. ***

[7/19/2018 11:27:56 PM] Ash: That's a curtain but the curtain is definitely.... on fire.

[7/19/2018 11:29:39 PM] *** Jo enjoys the hell out of that, and the remnants of the brain firewall probably don't last very long. ***

[7/19/2018 11:48:27 PM] Jo: … I didn't know you felt that way too.

[7/19/2018 11:50:13 PM] Ash: Theo:  … I don't show it well.

[7/19/2018 11:50:22 PM] Ash: Theo:  Apparently that's a dragon thing.

[7/19/2018 11:52:18 PM] Jo: I just didn't want to... mess it up.

[7/19/2018 11:54:00 PM] Ash: Theo:  I don't think you had.

[7/19/2018 11:56:36 PM] Jo: Well, no. But if I'd had feelings and you hadn't... well, that might have been difficult.

[7/20/2018 12:01:29 AM] Ash: Theo:  … well, yes.

[7/20/2018 12:04:02 AM] *** Jo kisses him on the shoulder. ***

[7/20/2018 12:04:09 AM] Ash: He blinks -- as if thinking about how awkward it would have been -- he didn't think about that.

[7/20/2018 12:05:49 AM] Jo: You have a lovely mind, by the way. Complex, but patterned.

[7/20/2018 12:06:54 AM] Ash: Theo smiels, genuinely. ".... thank you.  That's the nicest thing anyone's ever said to me."

[7/20/2018 12:07:32 AM] Jo: You ought to be getting more compliments.

[7/21/2018 4:39:45 PM] Ash: Theo shrugs, and lays back on the bed.

[7/21/2018 4:41:42 PM] *** Jo sits next to him. ***

[7/21/2018 4:47:33 PM] Jo: What are we going to do?

[7/21/2018 4:53:01 PM] Ash: Theo:  Short-term, or generally speaking?

[7/21/2018 4:53:39 PM] Jo: Generally. I haven't ever been... involved like this.

[7/21/2018 4:57:53 PM] Ash: Theo:  Me neither.

[7/21/2018 4:59:25 PM] Jo: What would happen if I slept with someone else? What would happen if you did?

[7/21/2018 5:01:47 PM] Ash: Theo:  Not something that happens a lot for me, so I don't think you need to worry about that. Relationships are complicated sets of variables when you just have one, nevermind several such entanglements. I don't know that I have the math to cope with that.

[7/21/2018 5:03:38 PM] Jo: Then what would happen if I did?

[7/21/2018 5:03:48 PM] Ash: Theo:  I would be extremely jealous.

[7/21/2018 5:05:25 PM] Jo: Then I shouldn't.

[7/21/2018 5:05:48 PM] Ash: Theo:  I will try not to be terribly possessive.

[7/21/2018 5:06:18 PM] Jo: It's a stereotype that dragons are.

[7/21/2018 5:13:47 PM] Jo: … I shall try not to do it. I haven't really wanted to for a while. Though I do love Cas.

[7/21/2018 5:16:31 PM] Ash: Theo:  …. I would hate to cause you discomfort, though.

[7/21/2018 5:17:20 PM] Jo: I would hate to cause you discomfort, Theo.

[7/21/2018 5:35:42 PM] Ash: Theo smiles. "... well, at least that feeling is mutual.  I suppose w'ell have to muddle through."

[7/21/2018 5:38:41 PM] Jo: I think I love you.

[7/21/2018 5:40:45 PM] Ash: Theo smiles back. ".... I think I love you too. "

[7/21/2018 5:43:42 PM] *** Jo leans over and kisses him on the cheek. ***

[7/21/2018 5:43:54 PM] Jo: I shall try to keep you safe.

[7/21/2018 5:45:39 PM] Ash: Theo:  … Anya would say I need all the help I can get.

[7/21/2018 5:47:46 PM] Jo: Anya would be right.

[7/21/2018 5:57:23 PM] Ash: Theo:  I would point out that she's the one that spent two weeks as a vampire thrall, but then she'd bite me.

[7/21/2018 5:58:01 PM] Jo: I hope you don't mind that I'm not a dragon.

[7/21/2018 6:04:37 PM] Ash: Theo:  Why would that bother me?

[7/21/2018 6:07:33 PM] Jo: Usually people aren't terribly keen on demons in general. And, well... most people want someone like themselves.

[7/21/2018 6:12:21 PM] Ash: Theo:  Most dragons don't mate in their own species.

[7/21/2018 6:12:48 PM] Jo: They don't?

[7/21/2018 6:16:34 PM] Ash: THeo:  No. Even before we weren't quite so rare, dragons tend to be fairly... singular.

[7/21/2018 6:17:23 PM] Jo: Why haven't dragons died out, then?

[7/21/2018 6:22:06 PM] Ash: Theo:  Because when we mate with others, there's a decent chance the child will be a dragon.

[7/21/2018 6:24:35 PM] Jo: Oh. Do you want children?

[7/21/2018 6:35:00 PM] Ash: Theo:  I hadn't thought about it yet.

[7/21/2018 6:36:14 PM] Jo: I haven't either.

[7/21/2018 6:36:50 PM] Jo: I find the idea a bit scary, to tell you the truth.

[7/21/2018 6:48:14 PM] Ash: Theo:  How so?

[7/21/2018 6:50:02 PM] Jo: Creating a life and then being responsible for it, when it might be anything.

[7/21/2018 7:02:20 PM] Ash: Theo:  … also sometimes with dragons that life tries to eat you.

[7/21/2018 7:05:38 PM] Jo: I hadn't considered that.

[7/21/2018 7:16:15 PM] Ash: ((sorry! kitty stuff.))

[7/21/2018 7:16:22 PM] Ash: Theo:  Only sometimes.

[7/21/2018 7:16:33 PM] Ash: Theo:  and only with the draconic parent.

[7/21/2018 7:20:05 PM] Jo: You'd never eat a person.

[7/21/2018 7:20:20 PM] Ash: Theo:  No.

[7/21/2018 8:20:00 PM] Jo: I suppose I would.

[7/21/2018 8:20:07 PM] Jo: But the only person I've ever, er… eaten, is still Cas.

[7/21/2018 8:20:57 PM] Ash: Theo:  How do you usually get energy?

[7/21/2018 8:21:14 PM] Jo: Eating.

[7/21/2018 8:26:07 PM] Ash: Theo:  So, like everyone else, then.

[7/21/2018 8:26:47 PM] Jo: I like food.

[7/21/2018 8:30:41 PM] Ash: Theo:  Where'd you learn magic from?

[7/21/2018 8:32:58 PM] Jo: My mother, mainly. Father for the more technical and theoretical aspects.

[7/21/2018 8:42:25 PM] Ash: Theo:  Where's your mother now? You said your father was in England.

[7/21/2018 8:42:57 PM] Jo: Egypt. He's an excavator.

[7/21/2018 8:47:49 PM] Ash: Theo:  Have you been?

[7/21/2018 8:48:26 PM] Jo: An excavator or in Egypt? Both, I spent most of my childhood there.

[7/21/2018 8:50:13 PM] Ash: Theo:  What was that like?

[7/21/2018 8:51:27 PM] Jo: Oh, it was marvelous! Quite a bit of freedom. Mother doesn't believe in a lot of rules.

[7/21/2018 8:59:09 PM] Ash: Theo:  I've never been to Egypt.

[7/21/2018 9:01:09 PM] Jo: It didn't feel like home. But England didn't either.

[7/21/2018 9:02:38 PM] Ash: Theo:  Has anywhere felt like home?

[7/21/2018 9:03:57 PM] Jo: You feel like home.

[7/21/2018 9:05:08 PM] Ash: Theo smiles. "Do I?  I'm not that big in my dragon shape, am I?"

[7/21/2018 9:06:02 PM] Jo: It isn't the size, it's the feeling.

[7/21/2018 9:06:55 PM] Ash: What feeling is that?

[7/21/2018 9:08:20 PM] Jo: Well... belonging.

[7/21/2018 9:11:57 PM] Ash: Theo smiles.

[7/21/2018 9:13:12 PM] Jo: Perhaps I'm already part of your hoard.

[7/21/2018 9:14:36 PM] Ash: Theo:  There's a distinct possibility.

[7/21/2018 9:15:08 PM] Jo: As long as I'm the best part of it.

[7/21/2018 9:20:48 PM] Ash: Theo:  Oh, most definitely.

[7/21/2018 9:25:10 PM] Jo: I can't wait to see it.

[7/21/2018 9:35:03 PM] Ash: Theo:  We'll be there before long.

[7/21/2018 9:38:12 PM] Jo: I've enjoyed being your wife.

[7/21/2018 9:49:47 PM] Ash: Theo:  We haven't even left the cabin.

[7/21/2018 9:51:08 PM] Jo: Are you complaining?

[7/21/2018 9:51:29 PM] Ash: Theo:  Did it sound like I was? That was not intentional, if so.

[7/21/2018 9:53:23 PM] Jo: Oh, good. We could get married, you know. Really married.

[7/21/2018 9:54:09 PM] Ash: Theo:  … are you proposing?

[7/21/2018 9:56:01 PM] Jo: Yes, I suppose I am!

[7/21/2018 10:00:27 PM] Ash: THeo:  Well. I say yes, then.

[7/21/2018 10:02:19 PM] Jo: Oh good. I shall conjure you a ring when we reach our destination. As soon as I can. It is rather ugly, I'm afraid, but tradition is tradition.

[7/21/2018 10:03:10 PM] Ash: Theo:  I'm sure I can find something good in my hoard.

[7/21/2018 10:07:24 PM] Jo: I am very excited to see it, Theo.

[7/21/2018 10:17:51 PM] Ash: Theo:  I think you'll like it. IT'swhere my workshop is, too.

[7/21/2018 10:20:16 PM] Jo: Are we almost there?

[7/21/2018 10:24:38 PM] Ash: Theo looks out the window. "Um."

[7/21/2018 10:30:39 PM] Jo: … oh dear. Here, help me get my dress on.

[7/21/2018 10:35:17 PM] *** Jo hurries to get her clothes back on and tries to fix her hair a bit. ***