Our best selves pt.3: Rural pleasures
Story by DonWest on SoFurry
The third part of Don and Grayscale’s story.
Okay, I think I've figured out the formula, and some are going to either hate or love me for it.
One story is clean, the one after is porno, and repeat. I mostly just want to get some story into the mix, so that's the plan for now.
I'm pretty sure that might upset some people, but have some faith, I know exactly how to make up for it. :)
Onto the story!
November 18th, 1792-
“So, how much farther is this place?"
Don was quickly snapped away from his own little world of thought as he heard Grayscale's voice. The dragon's voice always fascinated Don, how she was able to sound so feminine despite the scaly exterior. He quickly looked around and immediately remembered where he was. Looking down, he saw the ground beneath them, covered in fields, dirt roads, and the occasional village. They have to be just over a thousand feet above the ground.
“Uhm, I think we- gah, hold on." Don stammered, unaware of how much time had passed. It was unbelievable to him. Just a year ago, he was terrified of flying, now he was able to practically doze off.
He pulled a map from a satchel tied to Grayscale's saddle, flipping it around a couple times as he tried to get the right orientation, the amount of wind blowing by making it an absolute pain. “It looks like we are… ah, it's just over that ridge." Don pointed right ahead at a mountain, which was apart of an entire mountain chain, like ripples of water on a still pond.
Grayscale groaned in annoyance, sooooo many mountains to fly over. She wasn't even very confident in this whole plan in general. She could work with people, sure, but she did not like lingering in bigger towns. “Don, are you sure about this? I'm not opposed to lying low somewhere, but… a town of all places?" She asked, looking back at the human on her back with an inquisitive, somewhat concerned look.
In truth, Don wasn't sure about it either. But he had heard good things about this town, and in truth… “Ive been looking into it, you want to settle down right?" Don asked rhetorically. He already knew Grayscale's answer. “Because this is probably the best town in the Roman Empire to do it. They're very lenient with dragons, they accept Ultor refugees. Who knows? Maybe they'll even be okay with… us." He said, referring to their… unconventional relationship.
Grayscale was still hesitant, for reasons she really didn't want to explain. But it's not like she had many other options, there aren't a lot of towns in any empire that'll accept a dragon like a fellow citizen. “Still Don, there's just a lot I can see going wrong. I was born Greek, you were born farther south, what if they're the kind of people who hate outsiders?"
“They're not, at least that's what everyone keeps telling me." Don said. He must have asked around twenty different people the same question. “What's the best place to settle down with a dragon?" Though, he was almost certain that none of them knew the context. He had heard good things though; good people, plenty of work, very dragon friendly, and most importantly, a good tavern. “Just trust me Gray, I think this'll turn out just fine."
At this point, the two had begun ascending over the mountain and flying over the peak, revealing more flat land behind it and more lines of mountains. “Is that it?" Grayscale asked, gesturing to a distant set of buildings nestled in the valley. The town was certainly small, with twenty, maybe twenty five houses built up around three large dirt roads. Right next to it was a river, stretching along the base of the mountain they had just crossed. “Yep, that'd be it, Buchanan."
Don and Grayscale maneuvered and landed on a road just outside of town, not knowing if there are any specialized spots for dragons to land. Don hopped off of Grayscales back and the dragon took a moment to stretch out her wings, which were tired from all the mountain flying they had been doing all day. Every time they landed, Grayscale always wanted to complain about just how heavy Don was in the air.
“You alright?" Don asked, watching Grayscale strain and grunt as she worked out all the aches along her spine. “Don, have I ever told you that you're somehow heavier than any bomb I've ever carried?" Grayscale sarcastically purred, her voice strained as she arched her back in a way that made her look absolutely ridiculous. Don couldn't help but chuckle. A stretching dragon always looked so comical.
Soon enough though, the two began their short walk into town. Don was pleasantly relieved to see that there wasn't exactly a lot of foot traffic on the wide dirt road, save for the occasional wagon or one or two people on horseback riding in and out of town. Looking to the right of all the buildings, the two saw nothing but fields of wheat and tobacco for miles, almost stretching to the next mountain parallel to the one the pair flew over.
Walking closer, the two were able to see the subtle hustle and bustle. Buchanan was a set of buildings along three main roads, an off shoot road to the right leading up to a ranch on one side and a farm on the other. All of the buildings were rather small, the only buildings you could call tall being a couple of churches sprinkled in along each road. Don let out an impressed whistle as he counted four churches in one town.
Finally, they crossed the waving sign supported by a tall wooden beam that resembled an upside down “L" and two chains, the text reading “Welcome to Buchanan. Founded 1783." The pair looked around at the town and its people as they walked down what appeared to be Main Street. Other than the occasional glance though, nobody really seemed to notice them, which somewhat surprised Don. If dragons were respected in this town, then it explains the lack of looks on Grayscale, but Don on the other hand stuck out like a sore thumb.
Don was covered in a mix of leather and plate armor, and was wearing a two hundred year old helmet with a flared hat bolted to it. Everyone in the town looked like farmers, while Don looked like the equivalent of a medieval cowboy bounty hunter. “So, who do we talk to?" Grayscale asked, stopping in the street for a moment to look around. “Well, best bet is we ask around, find out who's running the town. There's stuff I need to find out." Don said, looking around at the various buildings to see which one would probably have someone important.
“Well, while you're doing that, I'm going to see about getting myself acquainted with some… establishments." Grayscale mused, focusing on a building that seemed to be an attention center. Don smirked under the helmet. Despite his own attempts, Grayscale seemed to always be the first to find the local tavern. “For, y'know, finding the pleasures of rural living." Grayscale shot a side eye smirk at Don, eliciting him to roll his eyes.
“Well, farewell my human mate. I'm off to see about the possibility of us getting absolutely hammered." Grayscale chuckled, quickly trotting down the street in the direction of the supposed house of drunkenness. Meanwhile, Don turned to check the nearest building of importance. “Guess I'll start with the churches…" Don spoke to himself, making his way across the street to enter the tall, white painted house of god.
“So… Mister West… you say you're a Ultor Imperium defector?" A man asked, grabbing a bottle of whiskey from a cabinet on the wall. The man, all things considered, seemed to be a mix of kind and professional. He wore a fairly modern suit for the time, a dandelion pinned to the right of the button up flap. His head was nearly clean shaven, the only facial hair being a bushy handlebar mustache. He earlier introduced himself as the mayor of Buchanan, a fairly new title that Don hadn't hear of before.
His office was something to admire as well. Second floor of the biggest church, plenty of subtle but pleasing paintings, grandfather clock by the door, a modest desk set in front of a small window. From what he could see at least, the mayor of this town was quite humble, yet still holding his head up high. The best sign though, was that he kept a big bottle of whiskey in a cabinet on the wall. A man of class Don mused.
“Yes sir, that's right. Escaped via No Man's Land three years ago." Don responded, his voice now perfectly clear with his hat and helmet set on the desk. “And you say you've come here with a dragoness named Grayscale?" The man asked, handing Don a small shot of whiskey before again stepping behind the desk. “That's also right, she escaped the war with me." Don responded, taking a small sip from his whiskey glass. “And you both wish to live in our quaint little town, together?" The man again asked, cocking an eyebrow as he sat down in his chair.
Don hesitated for a moment, maybe he shouldn't have said that he and Grayscale wanted to live together. “Yes sir, that's right. Just… looking to settle down after a few years of being on the run. Now that the war is more or less over, I figure running isn't exactly necessary anymore." The man nodded, seemingly in a state of thought. “I hope you don't mind me asking, but… what is your affiliation with this dragon?"
Don subconsciously said “Oh shit" in his mind. The one question he was hoping not to be asked, save for maybe his rampage in Arborsail. He didn't really even know how to lie about his answer. He just had to wing it. “Well, Grayscale, uhm, I saved her life, and she saved mine. We're a… package deal I guess you could call us." Don said, finish his shot of whiskey after he made his “grand excuse".
The man nodded and smiled, seemingly believing Don's story. “Ah, the partner for life types. You're lucky, we can always use more people like that around here." The man mused, holding up his still empty glass to Don. “Well, I believe we do have some options for you two…" The man opened a drawer in his desk and pulled a small sheet of paper, a series of words and crossed out sentences written on it. “Well, you are in luck my friend. We have a house for rent just on the outer street of the town." The man turned the paper over and smiled some more. “And it looks like Mister and Misses Jericho are looking for work on their ranch.”
Don nodded along with the mayor as he spoke. He certainly was in luck, not only was he being granted housing, but pretty decent employment along with it. “Thank you sir, I promise to make the best of it.” Don said, unable to hold back a smile when he found himself thinking about his own luck. The man took a final swig of his whiskey and set his glass down on the desk.
“Now of course, the dragon will also have to speak with me regarding her side of this arrangement. But until then, I’d say we have a deal, yes?” The man asked, holding out his hand to Don. Don nodded and shook the mayors hand, firmly and professionally. “Of course sir, it’s a deal.” After the handshake, Don turned away and almost stepped out the door before turning back, realizing he needed to check something. “Oh, sir? How good’s the tavern?”
Don made his way down the street with a smile on his face. After checking out the house that was deemed more or less his and Grayscale’s, he finally dropped off his armor and put on some normal clothes, wearing a white undershirt and a plaid flannel and of course keeping his hat. After a couple minutes of walking, he made it to the end of the street, looking upon a decent sized, one story wood and clay building.
Looking up at the side of the roof, he saw two signs, one that reads “Buchanan Royal Tavern” the sign next to it reading “dragons are all welcome”. Well, that more or less confirmed it, this is where Grayscale was. Pushing open one of the oak double doors, Don was greeted by a large room full of tables and chairs, the walls lined with paintings, trinkets, and lanterns. Being as late in the day as it was, there weren’t many people in the building, only the occasional group or solo drinker.
“Hey Don!” Don’s attention was quickly shifted to the other end of the establishment, where the bar counter and a certain Gray colored dragon were set. Grayscale gestured Don over with a flick of her head, smiling a little too cheekily for Don’s comfort. Don walked over to the counter and stood next to Grayscale, looking around the other end of it looking for the person to tend to the patrons. “Don, I know I say this a lot, but you’re not gonna believe who I managed to find.” Grayscale chuckled, her tail swishing on the floor with excitement.
Don felt even more nervous over that. Usually when she says “you’re not going to believe…” it’s always a source of something that causes trouble. “Who? Who did you find that’s making you so giddy?” Just as Don finished asking, he heard a deep, feminine voice from behind him. “Oh, your lady friend is talking about me.” Don turned around and his eyes went wide as he was greeted with an unexpected sight.
“What, never seen a dragon running a business before?” The voice said again. Behind the counter was a red and yellow dragoness, a little smaller than Grayscale. Most of her body was covered in scarlet red scales while her underbelly scutes and the membrane of her wings were a dark yellow. She was looking at Don with a pair of emerald green eyes, a sliver of yellow around them almost resembling what could be called eyeliner. Between her horns, which were long and swept very subtly downward, was a yellow frill that started at her forehead, and ran all the way down to the base of her tail, giving her a somewhat regal appearance.
“Don, this is Nina, she owns the place.” Grayscale said, gesturing to the scarlet dragoness. “Indeed I do, and judging by that look on your face, either I’m just so exceedingly beautiful that you’re in shock, or you’ve never seen a dragon running a tavern before.” Nina chuckled, looking at Don with a wide, confident smirk. “Well, you’re one for cockiness, that’s for sure. So you run this place by yourself?” Don asked, not entirely believing that the dragon is completely self reliant. “Well, not completely on my own. I have a helper, his name’s Azrael. When he isn’t out there running jobs, he’s here helping me run the place.”
“But anyway, enough about me. I must say, you’ve made Gray here quite the lucky dragon, she’s been preaching about you half the time we’ve been talking.” Don frowned at the information he was hearing. He looked over at Grayscale with a look of frustration, knowing she said something about the two of them being together. That look was all Grayscale needed to see and she hung her head low, wearing a guilty expression. “Okay, okay, maybe I told her a little about me and you. But in my defense, she isn’t going to care as much as a human will.”
“Right you are Grayscale. In fact, I think it’s cute. Hearing that a dragon mated with a human just… entertains me.” Nina chuckled, looking at Don with a teasing glint in her eye. “Great” Don thought. “Now there are two dragons that know how to frustrate me.” Though, Don couldn’t help but chuckle at the absurdity of it. “Well, I’m glad to hear that you don’t care. That makes less for me to deal with.”
Nina again chuckled, her expression dropping to a more sultry smirk. She leaned forward and rested her head on the counter, looking up at Don with a teasing glint in her eye. “Oh well, I wouldn’t say you don’t have to worry about me.” She looked over at Grayscale and then back at Don, who was looking halfway between confused and terrified. “You see, one of the things your dragoness was kind enough to share was just how… capable you are with that thing between your legs, and it got me all worked up just thinking about it. So me and her made a deal. The next time you two decide to have some fun, you come and get me to join in.”
Don looked positively stunned at what he just heard, an expression halfway between shock and frustration. He slowly looked up at Grayscale, who was already looking back at Don with the biggest “oh shit” expression a dragon could have. Nina looked between them and couldn’t help but giggle, her expression one of excitement and mischief. “Oh I can tell I’m gonna like you two.”
Later that day, after the sun had already fallen over the horizon, Don and Grayscale both went over to their new house to call it a day. All things considered, it wasn’t exactly an impressive home, but it was enough to satisfy the couple. Stepping inside, Don threw off his boots and played back on the couch, letting out a long sigh of relief. Meanwhile, Grayscale splayed her wings and played back on the carpet, rolling onto her back and stretching out her limbs and body like a giant cat.
“So Donny, what do you think?” Don looked down at Grayscale as he heard her voice, seeing the dragon lazily rolling around and running here on the floor. “New place, a town, some work, already making friends, I can’t even believe I had doubts about this place” Grayscale chuckled, looking up at her human still reclined on the couch. “I think we can make a life here, a good life.” Don mused, looking up at the ceiling with a look of thought on his face.
Grayscale slowly stood up and walked over to where Don was lying, lowering her head and nuzzling her snout against his cheek. “I’m happy you’re doing this for us Don, y’know that?” Grayscale asked, her tongue flicking out for a moment to lick his skin. Don smiled and adjusted the angle of his head, reaching out to give Grayscale a small kiss. “Yeah, I know. Just looking out for ya.” The two stayed together for a moment before Don eventually got up, balling his hands into fists and pushing them against his back to pop it.
“Well, how do you feel about going to sleep? Personally, I feel like someone drugged me.” Don said with a chuckle, already walking towards the bedroom. Grayscale quickly followed, letting her wings drape slightly. “Oh, god yes, I need some sleep after carrying your heavy butt over those mountains.” Grayscale chuckled. In the bedroom, the bed was surprisingly big, a queen size no doubt. With a little clever maneuvering, both of them could probably fit on it.
Grayscale hopped on first, letting her wings hand lazily behind her as she laid on the left side, lying down on her flank to face the middle. Don climbed in with her and laid down on his side, scooting to make sure they both had at least a little bit of room. It was somewhat cramped, but neither of them were complaining. Slowly, Don reached out and laid his hand on the side of Grayscale’s muzzle, slowly stroking her scales with his fingers. “I love you Gray.”
Grayscale purred at the touch and reached out with a foreleg, cupping Don’s cheek in her clawed paw as she returned the gesture. “I love you Donny.” She whispered, the two just staring at each other with half lidded eyes. Eventually, the crushing weight of tiredness began to work its magic, the two slowly drift off to sleep.
At that moment, both of them knew that, somehow, everything might just turn out alright.
To be concluded