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So, I decided that its time for a lore drop for this series. I hope it answers a few questions about our handsome dragon.

If you enjoy it, please let me know, so I can keep giving you what you like, and if you see anywhere were I can improve, please let me know that too. In any case, on with the show, I hope you like it.

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“Goddamn it.” Teri whispered, resting his forehead against Hephaestus’ musclebound chest. “Being with you really has a way of making the rest of the world fade away in a hurry.”

“Heh.” The big scaly chuckled, giving Teri one last squeeze and kissing the top of his head before letting him go. “That is quite a compliment.”

“I mean it.” The human replied, returning the squeeze and backing up slightly. “Maybe if we ignore them, they will go away.” The doorbell sounding again put a lie to that hopeful thought a moment later and he grimaced, sighing in exasperation.

“Maybe not.” The dragon said, reaching out and handing him the bathrobe he hardly ever touched.

“Thank you.” Teri replied, sliding his arms into the sleeves and turning towards the bathroom door, resolute. He nearly jumped out of his skin a moment later when he felt the dragon’s tail coyly rub its way up his naked leg under the robe, the scales just barely lifting his scrotum before it slid back out from the robe. The textured sensation of the tail sliding out from between his legs made his heart race, his shaft starting to stand erect once more despite everything they had done that day. Looking at his lover in surprise, he found the red and black creature looking perfectly innocent even as his tail curled back behind him. Trying and failing to glare in mock irritation, Teri cleared his throat before continuing. “I’ll try and get rid of whoever this is quickly. I still have several days off, and I intend to spend every moment I can with you.”

“I look forward to it.” The deep, rich voice replied, his tone oozing with a quality that tempted the human with golden visions of wonderful, loving and passionate moments stretching on and on forever before him. It was a physical effort to turn away, to leave the room, and walk off down the hall towards the front door, one that seemed to require more effort with every step. Whoever this was had better have a damn good reason to be interrupting him. Of course, that had been his exact attitude when it had been Jackson coming to the door with Hephaestus’s statue, so maybe he ought not to be so annoyed at random interruptions to his time off. The doorbell ringing a third time cut off his train of thought, making him suddenly desire to take the damn thing apart so it couldn’t annoy him anymore once the unwelcome visitor was gone. Flicking on the light in the entryway to signal that he was on his way, Teri took a breath before unlatching the door and swinging it open.

“Hey.” Robert said, his face fixed in the familiar, almost smug half-grin that Teri had once found endearing, but now utterly failed to impress. The presence of his cheating ex-boyfriend standing on his porch like nothing had happened between them made a complex stew of emotions pour itself into his brain all at once, almost drowning the pleasant warmth of the morning in anger, wonder and pain, making him almost miss the ride-share car driving away in the street. And yet, surprisingly enough, the gut-wrenching pain that he had had to savagely suppress yesterday was totally gone. But the anger; that was still there, blazing like an inferno in his chest. It took every ounce of effort he possessed not to snarl, his lip twitching with the effort. Seeing how he was dressed, Robert’s grin shifted a little bit. “Did I catch you at a bad time?”

“There is no such thing as a ‘good time’ for you to be here, Robert.” Teri replied caustically, the other man looking surprised and hurt at his tone of voice, which, considering the reason they had split, made little sense. “I thought I had made it clear last time I saw you that I never wanted to see you again. What the hell are you doing here, anyway?”

“I was thinking that maybe we could talk,” He stated, trying for a winning tone that just came off as oily to Teri’s ears. “You know, work things out?”

“The fuck are you on about?” Teri snarled, unable to hold the expression back this time, incredulous, his hand tightening up on the door. “We have nothing to talk about. I’m pretty sure we covered everything that needed saying right about the part where you tried to shift your cheating on me over into it being my fault.”

“I admit, I was being dumb about that, and I’m sorry.” Robert stated, wincing slightly, and leaning in a little, like he was about to walk inside the house. “Since then, I...well, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you.”

“What, your new boyfriends not doing it for you?” Teri asked sarcastically, closing the door part of the way. “Why don’t you just go get another? Its what you are good at.”

“Come on, man, that isn’t fair.” Robert said, his tone wounded, ingratiating.

“Fair? Fair?!” Teri demanded, his free hand balling into a fist. “What was fair about you living in my house, proclaiming your love while you cheated on me!? What was fair about you sleeping with two different guys while I was being loyal to our relationship!? What was...” Cutting off his own words, Teri looked away and rolled his neck around, trying to head off the explosion building in his chest.

“Look, I made mistakes, I own that. But I am going out on a limb here, trying to patch things up.” Robert stated, again making the move that said he expected to be invited in. Looking up at the rain still coming down out of the sky, he returned his gaze to Teri. “Look, will you meet me halfway here, and let me in?”

“No.” Teri stated icily, stepping back and swinging the door shut, only to have it bounce back off of Robert’s foot. To his surprise, Robert slid the rest of his leg inside, and Teri felt a little trickle of fear filter through his anger. Robert had never been particularly physical, but he was heavier than Teri and he didn’t feel like he could force him back out of the door if he got inside. “What do you think you are doing?!”

“Look, I want to say my piece, and I’m not going to leave until I do.” Robert said, squirming through the gap into the entryway like an eel. “Will you relax?”

“Get the Hell out of my house!” Teri shouted and Robert looked shocked once more, like he couldn’t believe Teri wouldn’t want to hear him out.

“Why are you being like this?” He asked, sudden suspicion making him frown. “Do you have somebody new here, or something?”

“As a matter of fact, yes I do.” Teri said, backing up a pace, his hands coming up into fists in frustration. “And he is better than you in about a thousand ways, so if you don’t mind…”

“Well...” Robert began, the expression on his face the same one that he had been wearing on the night of their last fight, when he tried to wriggle his way out of Teri’s anger. It was as if he was hurt that Teri was moving on, and it made Teri so mad he could hear his pulse in his ears. “I am still not leaving, not until...”

His voice trailed off as heavy foot falls echoed through the house and Teri’s eyes went wide in realization, stepping back as if he was going to block the hallway. A moment later, Robert’s eyes bulged in amazement as a huge draconian silhouette appeared at the end of the hall, Hephaestus coming into full view as he walked down the hall towards them. He was just as naked as he had been since he stopped being a statue last night, scales gleaming like polished gemstones and the sheer power of his force of presence made Robert gape like a fish, his mouth working in silence.

“Do we have a problem here?” The dragon rumbled, his voice like a rockslide in the mountains, coming to a stop beside Teri and crossing his arms across his powerful chest. Teri covered his eyes with one hand, looking down as he did so.

“T-T-th-that’s…” Robert stuttered, his eyes going up and down Teri’s lover several times in shock.

“My ex was just leaving.” Teri said quietly, grimacing. This was so much worse than just his ex practically forcing his way into his home. Now he had seen the impossible dragon and being who he was, he would blab about it to everybody. Of course, no one would believe him...Teri himself still had trouble believing it and he had spent the last twelve hours or so in the dragon’s wonderful and intimate embrace.

“He’s a... You have a...” Robert said incredulously, reaching out tentatively towards Hephaestus. To Teri’s surprise, the dragon reached out in turn, one eyebrow raising and the human he hated touched the scale covered arm of his lover, thick as a tree. “Good god... He’s real.” Teri could see the look in Robert’s eyes, the same look that he used to have when he looked at Teri, way back when they started dating. Absolute lust, and something else he had almost forgotten, something he had only recently recognized as calculation, as if the man were thinking through what advantage he could gain from what he was seeing. Teri felt his heart leap into his throat when Hephaestus moved a little closer, his scaled hand reaching out, almost like he was caressing Robert’s neck and chin. What the hell was happening? Was the dragon seriously going to just do that, seriously going to give in to his bastard of an ex? Was Robert going to take this from him too; was he going to lose his new lover, just as he gained him?

That icy rock of fear lasted all of about a second and a half, right until the dragon’s hand closed around Robert’s neck, no longer a caress, but rather a grab. His ex’s eyes went even wider as he felt the dragon’s arm tense, bulging out as the powerful limb cut off his breath. Robert made a weird choking sound that sounded like ‘hurglurk’, his hands starting to scrabble frantically at the dragon’s grip. He might as well have been trying to break the grip of a statue for all the luck he had. After a moment or two, the mighty dragon lifted the human off his feet by his neck, Robert’s legs flailing as they left the ground, trying to kick the scaly. After a moment of contemplation, the dragon gave him a glare and a shake that made him stop flailing instantly, fear crossing his gaze instead. A moment later Hephaestus shook his head, his deep voice almost shaking the floorboards as he spoke again.

“I believe Teri made his feelings quite clear.” He rumbled, taking a step towards the house’s entryway. Turning his head, the massive scaly smiled warmly at Teri, as if he was doing no more than carrying a bag of garbage out to the trash can. “Would you be a sweetheart and get the door, please? I believe this...man, was just on his way out.”

“Sure.” Teri replied, suddenly feeling like the sun was blazing bright in his chest. He had had nothing to fear after all. Opening the door wide again, Teri stepped back, the dragon carrying Robert over the threshold and back out into the rain. The storm was actually picking up in intensity, and no one in the neighborhood was out and about to see what was happening. A moment later, the dragon brought Robert closer to his face so he couldn’t miss the menace in his eyes.

“If I were you,” Hephaestus rumbled, eye to eye with the man Teri hated. “I wouldn’t come back here. Ever.” Then, with a flick of his arm like he was discarding a stick he had been carrying, he tossed Robert out into the storm. Teri’s ex flew at least fifteen feet, landing heavily in the yard, rolled head over heels once, then skidded a few more feet towards the street. He lay in a stunned heap for a few seconds, then slowly stirred, rolling over and staring in fear and shock at the pair standing in the door. Teri spared the crumpled and humiliated human in the yard a single negligent glance of disgust, then turned his gaze to his lover once more, warmth and happiness radiating from him as he looked at the dragon. Hephaestus dusted his hands off, then put an arm around him, pulling him into a hug as they both stepped back, closing the door and shutting out the world once more.

“Thank you.” Teri said, once more muffled by the warm scales, nestling in under the dragon’s chin and planting a kiss on his throat. With the gentle touch of one hand, Hephaestus raised Teri’s chin so his mouth could meet his muzzle in another kiss, this one more tender than any he had ever felt in his life.

“You are welcome.” The dragon said as they ended the kiss once more. “Though I guess that is going to cause some problems.”

“Yeah.” Teri replied, sighing and laying his head against the scales again, feeling the heart beat within the powerful chest. “Leave it to Robert to screw up a good thing. Though,” He said, pulling back a little to look at his dragon. “Its not like anyone would actually believe him if he is gonna say something.”

“True,” Hephaestus stated, a look of resignation coming to his face. “But...”

“Yeah.” Teri said, understanding his point. Then, he cocked his head, something occurring to him. “Can you go back to being a statue? I mean, if he goes to the cops and they come to investigate, its obvious I don’t have the strength to do what he will say happened. They aren’t going to believe him, if they can’t find you.”

“No, I can’t.” Hephaestus stated, regret filling his tone. “Well, technically, yes, I can, but if I do, I can never return to this form, with you.”

“What?” Teri asked, surprised now. Giving a heavy sigh, the red and black dragon led him into the living room, flicking on a light switch with his tail on his way in so they weren’t in the dim, stormy dark. Seating himself on the couch, his tail curled against his side, and his wings furled so they rested comfortably against the back rest, he patted the seat next to him with one hand. Teri moved to join him, instinct having him discard the bathrobe on the way. When he was sitting beside his lover, his legs draped over one muscular thigh, the dragon put one arm across his shoulders, gently holding him in his embrace.

“I always hate this part.” The dragon said, wistful regret in his eyes. “Having to explain, I mean.”

“Explain what?” The human asked, confused, a knot of horror starting to form in his heart.

“How this works.” He explained, giving Teri a sad sort of smile. “How it always has worked.” Teri waited for him to continue, and the mighty scaly traced one claw idly down his shoulder, making him shiver and he looked at him with concern.

“You are scaring me a bit here Hephaestus.” Teri said and the dragon brought his other arm over so Teri was held in a full hug again.

“I’m sorry.” Nuzzling the smaller human again, the dragon continued. “It is the nature of the magic, the curse that makes this possible. I can only transform from a statue a single time for each owner, until I find what I didn’t understand I wanted.”

“What happens when you find...” Teri started to ask, trying to roll with the explanation, but the dragon immediately put a finger to Teri’s lips, cutting off his question with surprising urgency.

“Don’t. Please, don’t.” Hephaestus said, the sadness intensifying in his gaze, the amulet he had worn as a statue coming into being from nowhere around his neck once more, glowing slightly in a way that made Teri think of a veiled threat. “If you ask questions like that, before I have a chance to explain, I will be compelled to ask one in return, one that you will have to answer. And because you do not understand it, you will risk both of our lives. So please, let me explain first.”

“Okay...” Teri said, startled by what the dragon had said, but he reached out a comforting hand, caressing the dragon’s jaw.

“Let me start at the beginning.” Hephaestus said, taking a deep breath before continuing. “I was born a human being, just like any other, a long, long time ago. I don’t even know for sure how long; time just blurs together after a while. But, I was a younger son of the ruling family of a small kingdom to the east of here, one that has been conquered and reconquered and divided and overwritten so many times I don’t think even scholars remember that it existed, not that it matters really.”

“You are a prince?” Teri asked, surprised and the dragon that held him chuckled.

“Again, technically, yes.” He confirmed. “Though, can I be a prince if my country no longer exists? In any case, I learned long ago that titles like that have very little real meaning. Anyway, my two older brothers and I were the only children of my father that lived to maturity. The eldest of us, being the heir, had his pick of eligible women to marry, and the middle brother was a giant of a man, stronger than anyone we knew of, and, likewise, had no trouble finding someone. I...” Hephaestus paused a moment and smiled wryly, looking down at his muscular frame. “I had neither strength, nor charm, if you can believe it. I was always thin of build, awkward and shy, and the third son, the least likely to inherit anything, especially as my brothers began to sire children of their own. I never seemed to attract the same kind of attention that they did. I admit it, I was jealous of them, and I have regretted that the most since then. This was centuries before the idea of divided succession came about, so it was far worse to be the youngest of three princes than anyone understands today. At best, I was a threat to their place in the world, and at worst, well… But my brothers were good men, even by the standards of your time; they never rubbed their strengths and my lack in my face, but I resented their easy successes, even as I began to suspect that my tastes were not...”

“Towards… women?” Teri asked, laying his head on his lover’s shoulder, one hand tracing the line of his ribs soothingly. When the dragon nodded, Teri smiled. “Its never an easy realization at the best of times. It certainly wasn’t for me, and I grew up now, in modern times.”

“In any case, when I was a young man, about twenty, a man came to the court. He wasn’t dressed like anyone I had ever seen before, and he said he had journeyed out of the far east, seeking a worthy master he could serve. I don’t think that is where he was from, no matter what he claimed, his features more like a man from somewhere in Europe, than Asia. He claimed that he was a sorcerer, and demonstrated some truly impressive powers that I still don’t think he could fake, or exaggerate. I know I was impressed, and I immediately began to wonder if here, at last, might be a solution to my troubles; a man that could do the impossible. My father’s advisors told the king to turn him away, deeming him unworthy of trust, but my father instead gave him a chance to prove his worth.”

“You see, we had been feuding with another kingdom for generations, with neither being able to gain enough of an advantage to defeat the other for good. What my father tasked him to do, was to curse the ruling family of that kingdom, our enemy, promising rich reward if he would do it. The sorcerer bowed and left. We didn’t think anything of it, and I never got a chance to talk to him in private or to ask him for his help, and I forgot about it. Then, about three weeks later, rumors came that the entire court of the other kingdom had been stricken with some kind of madness, at the height of a yearly festival, ripping each other apart like wild beasts. The entire kingdom was thrown into disarray as it spread through their capitol, and my father celebrated, already making plans to seize the other land once and for all. Until, that is, the sorcerer came back, seeking the promised reward.”

“Your father didn’t give it to him, did he?” Teri asked, thinking he understood where the story was going.

“No, he didn’t.” Hephaestus said, shaking his head slightly. “He turned the sorcerer away, telling him had three days to leave his kingdom, or he would be put to death as a heretic to our gods. The sorcerer didn’t vow revenge, or get outraged or anything, He just gave a small smile, and bowed his way out, never saying a word. I guess that wasn’t the first time he had been treated like that, but his response should have been a warning to everyone. It certainly should have been a sign to me, I suppose, but I was young, and desperate, and afraid to lose the only chance I thought I had. So that night, I went looking for him, to his camp outside the town beyond the palace walls. He didn’t seem surprised to see me, and in fact, he seemed pleased. I thought that was odd at the time, but I wasn’t exactly thinking straight.”

“What did you ask him for?” Teri asked, now enthralled by the story.

“I told him I wanted to know what it was like to have what my brothers had, even if only for a little while. In my jealousy and misery, I thought that was what I had really wanted.” The dragon said, chuckling again.

“So he turned you into a dragon?” Teri asked, confused, not understanding how one led to another. “How does that make sense?”

“I’m getting there, I’m getting there.” The dragon said, smiling. “The sorcerer said that it was possible to give me what I asked for, but that I would need to do something for him first. He said he had performed the service my father requested, and so, he was owed payment. Payment my father had refused to provide. He told me that he would consider my retrieving his payment to be sufficient to provide me with what I had wanted. Even then, I thought that that was an odd thing to ask, and I was suspicious, so I inquired how much he wanted. The sum he gave me was smaller than I had ever thought it would be, small enough that I could easily carry it myself. In fact, it was a sum that I knew would hardly be missed from the treasury. So, I went and I took it without telling anyone. I was a prince, after all, I had the right, especially because it was to keep the kingdom from being indebted to someone who clearly had the power to do some terrible things if he wanted. Or, at least, that is what I told myself. I didn’t even consider asking my father to pay the sorcerer for his service, even if he sent him away afterword. On the walk back to the sorcerer, all I could think about was how impressed everyone was going to be with my sudden new strength and charm. Instead of an awkward weakling, my father would have a third great son, with the strengths of the others and I would have what I had wanted. I would be a worthy son, and everyone would win. I didn’t even consider that the sorcerer might have felt more wronged than he seemed. When I handed over the payment to him, he thanked me and poured the gold I had given him into a bowl. Then, he spoke a language I have never encountered before or since; it sounded...unnatural, and it sent shivers through me. The gold seemed to melt, flowing together, shrinking down, until it formed a medallion on a cord. The very one I am wearing now. He said that all I had to do, was put it on, and I would have what I desired. I didn’t even hesitate long enough to ask a single question.”

“I still don’t understand how being a dragon comes into it.” Teri said, shifting over so he was sitting more in Hephaestus’ lap, instead of draped over one leg, the position far less awkward.

“Neither did I, when it happened.” The dragon said, pulling his arms in so Teri was tucked more snugly against his muscular frame. “When I put this amulet on... I began to change almost instantly. It hurt, a lot, from the first moment. It hurt so badly I couldn’t even cry out. I swelled so fast that my skin ripped into tatters. It felt like I was going through a lifetime of growth in a single moment, and though it hurt, I welcomed it, eager for what I thought was coming. And... Then...” Hephaestus chuckled ruefully as he paused, one hand tracing the horns on his head. “I felt my body ripping apart in new ways, ways I hadn’t imagined. When I realized I was growing wings, my tail, my horns...I tried to stop it. I tried to take the amulet off, but it wouldn’t lift off of my skin at all. It was like it had become part of me. As I was struggling with the cord, the sorcerer began to explain, a cunning, cruel smile on his face. He asked why I was struggling; he was giving me exactly what I asked for. He called my desires what they were, in truth. Selfishness, jealousy, ignorance. Greed for strength I had not earned, arrogant assumptions. And a desire for lust, not truly for love. He called me a poor example of a man, but, he said I might make a decent dragon, like the ones in the legends of his homeland.”

“That’s...awful.” Teri said, horrified, wrapping his arms around his lover and hugging him close, lending whatever small comfort he could. He had always liked dragons, but to be forced into it, as a punishment? The sorcerer obviously had thought of only the very worst interpretations of draconian myth, and knowingly inflicted it on Hephaestus. “How could anyone do something like that?!”

“Hmmm...it gets better.” Hephaestus stated, returning the hug warmly. “He said that I was very like my father, wanting something for nothing. He said he wouldn’t have served my father even if I had convinced him to pay what he had promised, rather than simply taking it, as I had done. To punish me, as well as my family, he cast me in stone, taking me with him when he left my homeland. When I came out of the statue form the first time, I realized he had taken most of my memories of my human self, so I would never find my way home, and my father would never know what had become of me. He left my home, but not before he left behind another curse, a punishment for the rest of our people. He ensured that only bad fortune would befall our house, that they would see their kingdom fall. He instilled in me a message, so I would know why. He said I was not yet beyond saving, but that I needed to learn a lesson first. To teach me, he imposed a final imperative upon me. My statue would always find its way to those who would appreciate my talents and desires, and the magic would return me to how I am now. Then it would bind me and my owner in bonds of love, as true and enduring as any others, but only for a little while, a fleeting glimpse, like I had so foolishly asked for. And then I would be stone again, and handed on to the next owner, on and on in an endless loop.”

“You’re... you’re...a slave?!” Teri asked, shocked, starting to pull back, repulsed at the very idea. “And... what we feel for each other...its not...”

“Real?” Hephaestus asked, his smile making Teri’s heart ache, melt like it never had before being with the dragon. “Oh, its real. Very real. Its just not...built like it is with a normal relationship. As for being a slave, well, I don’t think so, not really.” Teri was even more confused, and the dragon pulled him close once again, very gently, giving him every opportunity to pull away if he wished. But he didn’t want to, not at all. He wanted to be held by the dragon, now and always, which concerned him now, even as he snuggled against his lover. “I chose this. I might not have known what I was choosing, but I still chose it. The rest, well, I don’t think it matters. Not really.”

“It matters. How can you be so calm about it?” Teri protested, clinging to the red and black scaled torso he was pressed against as if by holding him so close, he could hold away the terrible truth of the life he had had to live.

“Teri, I have had a long, long time to accept and understand what the sorcerer did for me.” The dragon said, and the human could feel his smile. “I have had a long, long life, where every waking hour is filled with deep, soul searing love. How many people can say that?”

“And loss, Hephaestus. You lose everyone.” Teri whispered, feeling a tear beginning to roll down his cheek at the thought of it. “I can’t begin to understand how many. How can you stand it?”

“Everyone loses the ones they love eventually.” Hephaestus replied philosophically, nuzzling against his human lover. “And it doesn’t change the fact that I love them, and that they have loved me. And yes, its true that I would trade it all for a lifetime with one person, to grow old with them. But that is one thing I will probably never have.”

“Probably?” Teri asked, something about the way his lover said that tweaked at his mind and he latched onto it like a drowning man to a life line. Not probably can’t. Probably won’t.

“That is the one true gift the sorcerer gave me. The cycle can be broken, and I can be freed of it.” And finally, the Dragon loosened his grip on the human with one final heartfelt squeeze. Reaching up, he took the amulet in both hands, pressing it between his palms. Twisting, he revealed that it was actually two identical halves that locked together, one of which he lifted over his head, the cord it was attached to separating from the other like magic. Which it probably was, Teri reflected. The dragon laid the free half on his palm, holding it in front of both of them so it caught the light. “Which brings me to the question I asked you not to ask. If it comes to it, the magic compels me to ask the question, just as the magic will compel an answer from you. If you answer the question correctly, you can choose to put this half of the amulet on. If you do, you will face a trial, much like the one that I faced when I first put it on. If you live through it, then the curse will be broken, and both of us will be free. But... its all or nothing. Succeed, and the bonds holding us will also be broken. Of course, the other side of it is if you don’t survive the transformation, then we both die.”

“So...wait.” Teri said, working through the description in his head. “If I answer the question correctly, whatever that means, and put the amulet on, I will transform too? And if I survive it, we will both be free. But if the bonds holding us are broken then...”

“Then...” Hephaestus said, sounding wistful again, “The love between us that the magic formed could be broken as well, and who knows what comes then? We could try and build the bonds like every other couple does and we might succeed. Or we could break apart in a day, a year, or a decade. Who can tell? But, that is reality for any couple, and what I never understood back when this all started.”

“So...” Teri began, sadness filling him again. “If you don’t ask, and I don’t answer, I will lose you, in a day, or a week or whenever someone finds out, and never see you again. If I do face it I will risk not only my life, but yours too, and if I fail, I’ll die, and lose you forever anyway. And even if I succeed, I may still lose you forever, the second the curse is broken.”

“That is right.” Hephaestus said, brushing the amulet in his palm with his thumb speculatively.

“That isn’t fair at all.” The human shook his head, panic starting to set in. Then, suddenly, a thought occurred to him that made his heart lurch, stopping the panic in a heartbeat. “No one has ever even been tempted to face the transformation, have they?”

“No, they haven’t.” The dragon confirmed. “Not that I blame them. It is a terrible choice, with terrible consequences. Most will choose not to be asked at all, if they even come to it. As for the rest, they choose not to face the trial. It is a smart choice, a logical choice. Better the golden memories of a few perfect days, or even one single memory, with someone you love, than to risk death, and for what? An uncertain future that might not even involve the one you have only known for a short time, and probably will no longer love? No.” The red and black dragon chuckled slightly. “The best ones listen to the story, and are truly sorry that they can’t bring themselves to face it. Jackson, the man who gave my statue to you, he was one of the good ones. He cried when he told me he couldn’t do it. He spent the next three weeks doing everything he could to make the time we had together memorable. But someone got suspicious, and he had to hide me and that was that. He kept me a secret, never discarding me even though he could never see me again. Until the magic compelled him to give me to you.” The pair were silent for a while, Teri staring at the amulet in his dragon’s hand, thinking it over. The sorcerer had done a terrible thing to his lover. Whoever he had been before, he wasn’t that person anymore. He hadn’t been for who knew how many centuries, and he didn’t deserve to suffer like that.

“Hephaestus...” He began softly. He knew he shouldn’t ask, knew that every logical thought in his mind was telling him to hold off, at least for a while, to draw out their time together. He didn’t have to do this now. Except... “I want to know the question.”

“I understand.” The dragon said with a heavy sigh, taking a breath like he was waiting for the plunge, then holding the amulet out with the cord toward Teri. “The question is... What are you willing to risk?”

Teri felt a wave of...something, wash over him when he heard the question, his mind racing through every possible permutation of the query. It could mean so many different things, but he knew in his heart what it was referring to. And he felt words starting to force themselves up his throat, the only answer his logical mind could come up with. He couldn’t stop them, the words almost being ripped from him. He tried to swallow them, desperately trying to find another way. But the denial was coming, he couldn’t help it. He couldn’t justify risking his life, not for such a small benefit. Then, in the beautiful eyes of his tender lover, eyes filled with understanding, and long resignation to torment, he saw it, just a glimpse, a tiny spark. There and gone in a flash, but there. Hope.

And that burned away the words that had almost forced themselves from him. How many times had Hephaestus asked the question, how many times had he hoped, only to have it dashed away at the last moment? And yet, he still hoped, every time the magic forced the question from him. Teri couldn’t justify the risk for himself. No one could. But for Hephaestus? Something else took the place of the forgotten words, something that soared from a place deep inside that he couldn’t name. It was like a warm summer dawn in his heart, and he smiled, reaching out to touch the amulet, as if to consider the paths before him.

“That isn’t the right question.” Teri commented, the words tumbling out with perfect confidence. His statement clearly took the dragon aback, something he had never heard before, and Teri closed his hand over the amulet, taking it from the scaled hand. “The right question is... Are you, worth taking the chance?” Then, before his lover could react, Teri raised the cord and slipped it over his head without hesitation, the amulet settling in against his chest, right over his heart, an almost electric tingle accompanying it settling into place. “To me, you are. Now and always…”