Wild Wastes -CH2-

Vince hadn’t even gotten through the portal when what sounded like an explosion came through the little box Andrea had.

“What the… shit,” said Felix. “Andrea, Vince, I’m sorry, but I’m going to have to cut this one short. I have to deal with something.

“Andrea, give him the pack?

“Vince, I truly look forward to meeting you in the future. Please don’t be a stranger!”

There was a beep, and then a strange unceasing tone.

Andrea looked at the box and then poked it with a finger.

She looked rather disappointed.

“I wanted to make pancakes…” she murmured.

Moving out of view, she continued talking.

“Felix said to give you the pack. It’s something he put together just in case you ever came back through the portal.”

“He planned for this?” Vince asked, curious and cautious at the same time.

“Yes. He wanted you to open the portal so he could try to work out a trade deal with you. Felix is very interested in other planes,” Andrea said. “Uuun. It’s a bit heavy.”

“Give it to Red, house cat,” Red said, stepping up to the portal.

“I’m not a house cat!” Andrea said, coming back into view. “If we had time I’d give you a lesson in hand to hand combat you, you, you… Feral cat!”

Red grinned at the other Beastkin, showing her fangs.

“Red is indeed feral. Red likes you, house cat. We should be friends.”

Andrea made a face at the other Beastkin, then smiled.

“Sure! You seem like an angrier Felicia. Here,” Andrea said, holding out a large backpack.

Vince had never seen the like of it. The fabric alone looked alien to him.

“Okie dokie,” Andrea said, waving a hand at them. “I hope we can talk more. It’d be fun to have more friends. Until next time then.”

Ramona gave the Beastkin a tight smile, and flicked a finger against a switch.

The portal shut down immediately and winked out of existence.

“That was different,” Vince said. “And entirely unexpected.”

“Red doesn’t mind the house cat. Red thinks it’ll be fun to play with her,” Red said. She carried the pack over to Ramona and Vince, and set it down on the ground beside them.

Vince bent down and pulled at the zipper.

Inside was what looked like to him a large metal disc with a note attached to it.

Taking the note, Vince began to read it aloud.

“Dear portal traveler. The disc enclosed in this package will open a conduit to my world, and my location.

“I welcome you in the spirit of cooperation and adventure. Should you decide to visit, or wish to speak with me, simply put the disc down somewhere safe, and press the button on the top.

“A portal will activate, no additional power is required. To close the portal, merely press the button again.

“I look forward to seeing you soon, Felix,” Vince said, then folded the note up.

“This… Felix… seems intent to have you visit,” Ramona said, her tone indicating the same paranoid overtones Vince had.

“Red saw no lie in the house cat’s words.”

Red reached further into the pack, and pulled out a strange crinkling bag.

“What is this,” Red said, turning it over in her hands.

“It says… pancake mix,” Vince said. “Huh.”

***

“We never finished our conversation,” Ramona said from her side of the fire.

“Which conversation was that?” Vince asked.

He was still inspecting the bag that had been sent over. The craftsmanship and material were so strange to him. It was perfect, and yet seemed flimsy at the same time.

He had the vague impression that this was something that was cheaply mass produced. A simple blade to a blacksmith, sort of thing.

“Taking wives,” Ramona said simply.

That got Vince’s attention.

Looking around, he couldn’t see Red, nor could he feel her.

“She’s hunting. I asked if she wouldn’t mind not returning until tomorrow morning.

“She agreed, if I promised to help her get her one of meals tomorrow so…” Ramona said, as if it were nothing at all.

“I see,” Vince set the bag down, turning his full attention to the Dragonnewt. “And what did you wish to discuss further.”

“You. Not taking wives. Us. Me,” Ramona said, her voice slowly sounding more confused with every word.

“Let’s start with the top then. Not taking wives,” Vince said.

Thinking on the subject, he wanted to answer her honestly. Then again, he could barely be honest with himself about it.

“I’m afraid,” Vince said after a time. “I’m afraid that if I do exactly what Fes wants, I’ll have enough wives that I won’t see the same woman in the same month.

“It’s already bad enough with the Dryads. Some I see once or twice in the span of months. Sometimes even less.

“And… I don’t like that. I don’t like it at all. The idea of taking enough wives to have the same problem… upsets me.”

“Oh. That makes sense. I could definitely see that being… yeah. I get it,” Ramona said, frowning. “And you told Fes this?”

Vince smiled at the memory and shrugged his shoulders.

“She took it in typical Fes fashion. ‘Double up on some nights. You’ll see more of them that way.’”

“Yeah. I could see her saying that. Then again, she’s not human. Nor am I.

“I personally want to tear your head off and eat your heart. Or be mounted by you.

“They share an equal importance to me,” Ramona said, her tail swishing about behind her violently. “Just the very thought of your life’s blood rushing down my throat excites me.”

“Why is that?” Vince asked suddenly. “Do all Dragonnewt’s want to kill men?”

“Ah… no,” Ramona said, sobering quickly. “Not exactly.”

“What exactly then. I don’t understand it really. You’re the first and only Dragonnewt I’ve met.”

“We only want to kill and eat our mate,” Ramona said, as straight forward as a punch to the face. “We mate with only one until we kill them, or they die.”

“Ah,” Vince said lamely. “And you chose me?”

“No. My Dragon did. It chose you the moment you put me on the ground and nearly choked me out as if I were nothing to you.

“My Dragon wants to take everything from you and leave you as a husk.”

Vince was mildly shocked at that, and yet he wasn’t either. There were a multitude of Wasters that had similar behaviors.

It simply came down to keeping the species alive. And that was the survival of the fittest.

“Got it. And you’ve been keeping this to yourself because I didn’t want anymore wives,” Vince said.

Ramona nodded her head, her silver hair shifting around her horns.

“It was obvious when you refused Felicity that you meant it.

“Even Leila won’t put herself in a position where you can tell her no. She’d rather be your friend and pine for you, than risk being turned away.”

Vince could only nod his head. He was well aware of Leila and what she wanted.

“And that brings us back to now,” Ramona said, leaning forward over her knees.

Her wings spread out behind her for a moment, than settled back down quickly.

She’s very nervous.

“Let me turn this around. What do you want, Ramona? If you had to name it, what do you want?” Vince asked.

Her hands clenched into one another suddenly, then opened. Her arms went limp and hung at her sides.

“My Dragon wants to fight you, and mate. Me… I want to make love to you and call you husband.

“I hate this. I feel like I’m at war with myself,” Ramona said.

Do I want her as a wife though? She’s followed me for a while now… we’ve gone through some ugly things together.

Fes would tell me to do it. Already has, in fact.

“How about… you come over here, and we share my bedroll tonight. In the morning, we talk more about this, and we see where we go with it.

“To answer your question though, I think I can handle one more wife.”

Ramona lifted her head, peering at him.

“Are you sure?” she asked.

“Yeah. I am. Though if possible, could you tell your Dragon to knock it off for once? I’d like to enjoy your charms without having to practically knock you out for it.”

Ramona grinned at him. “I can do that.”

Before he could respond, she’d pumped her wings, closed the distance over the fire, and slammed into him.

Her face was pressed to his, her lips hungrily kissing him as her fingers immediately set to work at his armor.

Happy to not be in a life or death struggle for once with Ramona, Vince reached up and grabbed her horns.

She froze up when he did so, it was one of the few places he could get a good grip on her that got her to stop.

It’d taken a while for him to figure it out, but it worked every time.

“Stop… lay down. Let me love you,” Vince said, twisting her head to one side.

Ramona went with the motion, her head being pulled to one side, and laid down on her back onto his bedroll.

“Vince… I’m not-” Ramona said.

Not responding, Vince laid a hand over her mouth, his other still holding tight to a horn.

Waiting several seconds to make sure she got the point, Vince removed his hand from her mouth and horn, and started to slowly undo the hooks and latches to her leather armor.

Getting them unhooked, he began to peel her armor off her, enjoying himself as he did so.

Everything with Ramona was always violent. Rushed.

Forced.

Pushing everything off her shoulders, he managed to bare her torso, her modest bust visible.

Running his hands over her chest, he caressed her. Explored her.

Let his fingers run the length of her ribs and sides, the curve of her breasts.

Ramona was taking short shallow breaths. Little hiccuping things that made her body quiver.

Moving ever lower, his hands reached the hem of her trousers, and then hooked into them.

With a careful pull, he began to worry the fabric down from her hips.

The whisper of it traveling down her skin and scales was audible.

Getting it down to her ankles, he stopped, and left it there.

Reaching up he spread her knees apart, his fingers lightly trailing along her inner thighs.

Moaning, Ramona’s tail curled up on itself at her side into a coil.

She doesn’t know what to do with herself.

Using his left hand, Vince unbuckled his belt and kicked his pants and boots off.

<Redacted>

“Nnnn… Vince. That was so nice. So much better than when you beat me and take me,” Ramona said, her tail tightening around his hips. “Like that from now on. If my Dragon takes control just knock me out and make love to me after I wake up.”

Vince chuckled at that, and reached up taking a hold of one of her horns.

He tilted her head to one side, making her take in deep breath. Then he casually kissed her neck, then bit it hard enough to cause a mark.

Letting go of her bruised flesh, he gave her horn a little tug.

“I dunno, maybe I enjoy dominating your Dragon, too. After all, you’re both a woman and a Dragon, aren’t you?” he said, tugging her horn again.

“I love you,” Ramona said suddenly.

Vince wasn’t sure how to respond to that. It was unexpected.

Especially for Ramona.

“I’m sorry,” she said. “I don’t know what to say or do. My Dragon is being very… strange… right now.”

“I’d say the simplest answer right now is the best answer then. We go to sleep, and we see where we go in the morning with it,” Vince said, kissing her cheek.

“Oh, and when you get Red’s meal tomorrow, I’m going to hold onto your horns the entire time.”

***

Ramona had mostly returned to her normal blunt, acidic, and combative personality by the morning.

Though there were times that he could tell a difference in her.

She was noticeably tender to him. Even going so far as to nuzzle him on occasion.

He’d have to ask Fes about it, but from what he could tell from his own analysis was… her Dragon was suitably tamed by him that combat wasn’t the first go to anymore.

“Red isn’t happy,” said Red, catching Vince in the middle of his thoughts.

Ramona was out scouting their path back to the hosted talks. It was time for them to head back and here what the two parties wanted to do.

“And what aren’t you happy about?” Vince asked, looking at her.

“Red… Red wants things Red can’t have. To break Red’s curse,” she said, glaring at him.

“Alright. Can I help in any way?”

“No. Leila is working on it. Has been working on it. She told Red she’s close to being able to loosen it.

“When Red’s curse is broken, Red will take what Red wants.”

“And what is it that Red wants?”

“What Ramona got last night,” Red said defiantly. She rose up to her full height, trying to act like a predator confronting another.

“You will not resist Red the same way you did Felicity. You will accept Red,” she demanded.

Vince watched the “feral” Beastkin for a moment, before nodding his head.

“Alright, Red. You break your curse, and I’ll do that. You just tell me when and where, alright?”

Red’s face took on a shocked look, then a confused one.

She sunk down to a crouching position, her claws roughing up the grass.

“Red doesn’t understand. Red didn’t think you would just accept it,” she said, glancing up at him in between clawing the ground.

“Ramona and I had a good talk. I think I have a better idea of what I want out of everything. I just need to have a talk with Fes later.

“Otherwise, yeah, I understand, Red. Now how about you come over here, and I’ll give you a good scritch scratch and ear rub.”

Red bounced over to him immediately, smashing her hip into his side and rubbing her cheek against his stomach.

“Give Red attention. Red deserves it.”