Tempest Beacon

Story by Oridian on SoFurry

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#8 of Breakhorn (Series)

Facing a powerful storm, Nerlin and Pyxis take shelter in a coastal lighthouse.


Thanks to everyone who's been reading this series!


Heading south-westwards, the two fledglings following along the Julnir Mountain Range as it swept towards the ocean. As their flight continued, the mountains grew shorter and shorter until some of them were just hills, with ice and snow no longer covering all of their peaks.

As they flew, Pyxis let her mind drift. At first she enjoyed the simple, repetitive exertion of beating her wings at a regular pace, but then her thoughts began to turn to other things and she started thinking over what had happened back at their campsite. She and Nerlin were both almost grown adults, and the point of this whole expedition was to be independent, but even now she hardly felt ready to bid farewell to childhood and embrace maturity. Yet at the same time, she felt a deep, burning desire for Nerlin that ran deeper than mere friendship. They had already been friends, but now they were kissing and hugging and letting their tails entwine and doing these intimate things which friends didn't do.

As Pyxis thought about it, she tried to analyse why things were different and why she liked Nerlin so differently from any other dragon she knew. It was a difficult topic to reflect on.

Nerlin was smart, but he wasn't necessarily the single smartest person she knew. Even amongst the fledglings of their age group, there were others who scored better in their grades. But yet when they talked, Nerlin could often give her insights or titbits of information that she hadn't known, and he could challenge her views and beliefs in a rational but regardful manner. Grades were far from everything, after all, and Nerlin was unquestionably intelligent.

Nerlin was friendly and confident, but he wasn't necessarily the friendliest or most confident person she knew. Out of all Pyxis's friends, Jarzyl was the one who seemed to have the greatest talent for having people immediately like or at least respect her. But yet Nerlin was nice to talk with and he could easily make Pyxis laugh, and she found that endearing in a way like no other.

But those reasons were just reasons to be someone's good friend. Pyxis glanced towards the red-scaled fledgling flying just in front of her, and she felt something deeper than just friendship, even if it was hard to enunciate exactly what it was. Nerlin was well built, and Pyxis had no problems admitting to herself that she found him pleasing to look at. He wasn't overly muscled, but his wings were long and strong, making his flight swift and agile. But was it just physical attraction that she felt?

Perhaps it was a mix of everything, or perhaps there was some hidden aspect which she hadn't even considered. But in the end, Nerlin was the one who made her feel...something? Pyxis wasn't even sure how to term it. Did she love him? Certainly not in the same way she loved her brothers or her parents, but then her emotions seemed to run in such a different manner--in fact, things were almost the opposite. She loved her brothers and the rest of her family, yet she felt absolutely no physical attraction to them at all, whereas even seeing Nerlin made her hearts beat faster. It was all unknown territory here, trying to figure out what she was feeling and why.

When she looked at Nerlin--flying just in front of her in a wingleader position--Pyxis felt a deep desire to simply spend more time with him, enjoying his presence and his company. Their friendship was becoming something else, and undeniably there was also an aspect of this which was sexual.

Just a few weeks ago, Pyxis had gone into heat for the first time in her life, and this coming of age had been another event which had opened her eyes to things she'd never before considered. She had found herself constantly aroused and energetic, but her oestrus cycle had gone beyond just her body, and her mind had also been affected. Suddenly she'd become constantly aware of all the males around her, automatically noticing and judging them for attractiveness. The only exceptions to this scrutiny were those who were far outside her age group or social circle, as well as those with whom she was directly related, such as her brothers. It had been a unique experience.

For the week and a half where her body was fertile, Pyxis had dealt with these sensations and emotions, but her heat had finally ended some time before the survival expedition had begun. This was fortunate, because Nerlin usually ended up as the prime target of her attention and her fantasies. In their school classes, training hunts, or even any time they were in the same room, Pyxis found herself distracted by his presence. It had never become overwhelming or truly impossible to ignore, but being near Nerlin had made that tingly warmth in her underbelly grow just a bit more noticeable. So if she'd been forced to spend several nights so close to him with her body begging for an intimate touch, Pyxis couldn't be quite sure she'd have managed to stay responsible, despite the potential consequences.

But now that was over. She'd made it through her heat without getting any eggs put inside her, and her body had finally gone back to normal. Except her feelings for Nerlin--those hadn't gone away. Or perhaps those romantic feelings had been there even before she'd gone into heat, but only now was she realizing that what she felt was a desire for something more than mere friendship. Here she was spending so much time and mental energy wondering about Nerlin--but did he spend just as much time thinking about her?

Pyxis shook her head and beat her wings determinedly. It was just about time they switched flight roles, so she sped up and overtook Nerlin, and he smoothly dropped back to trail behind her wingtip. Glancing down to her shoulder strap, Pyxis looked at her compass just to double check that they were flying on the right heading. The natural terrain all around them was scenic and beautiful as snowy white mountains gave way to rolling hills covered in grass and forest. "We should reach the ocean by the end of today, I think!" Pyxis glanced back briefly, just in time to see Nerlin rock his wings from left to right, acknowledging her remark.

"By late afternoon or evening. Less mountains, and more sandy beaches," he agreed. For a moment they flew on in silence, then Nerlin spoke up again. "You know, I've never actually touched snow!"

"Really?"

"Never! I've seen it from far, but never up close."

"Let's change that then. We came all the way out here to the Julnirs, so you might as well." Leading the way, Pyxis turned sharply and headed towards one of the nearby mountain peaks. She dropped lower and lower until she landed in a flat, rocky area of the mountain which was covered in a thick layer of snow. Unlike Nerlin, this wasn't Pyxis's first time in the snow. Her family had previously taken a vacation tour out from Avaeria, visiting a nearby mountain which the City of Wings had been flying close to. The snow felt soft under her paws, but not as cold as she remembered.

Nerlin, however, appeared to feel otherwise. "Oo! That's cold!" exclaimed the red-scaled fledgling as soon as he landed beside her. "My paws... Ahh! It stings!" He danced between his four paws, looking ridiculous.

Pyxis giggled at the sight of her expedition partner being silly. "Hehe. Snow has to be cold, otherwise it's just water." Reaching down, she started gathering up some of the snow in her paws, compacting it to form a rough sphere.

"It doesn't hurt to touch water," Nerlin retorted. "Ok, I can check this experience off the list! I've touched snow and it isn't very nice. Can we fly off now? My paws are going numb--whoa!" Nerlin dodged to the side as Pyxis tried to toss a snowball at him. "I saw that! You missed!" He grinned at her and stuck out his tongue.

"Hold still!" Pyxis gathered up another snowball and tried to toss it at her expedition partner, but being quadrupedal, a dragon's forepaws just weren't dextrous enough to throw things with any accuracy. Her tail had more reach and could be swung better, but the appendage's tip was too thin to properly hold a snowball. So instead she resorted to a brute force approach. Pyxis opened up her wing, used it to scoop up a layer of snow, and flicked all of it towards Nerlin in a wide spray of powder.

Nerlin raised his own wing to block the snowy assault, then he also reached down and picked up a paw's worth of snow. Pyxis had been preoccupied with trying to roll another snowball, and Nerlin's thrown snowball caught her right in the snout. "Mmh!" she exclaimed, shaking her head and blinking her eyes.

"Sorry! I thought that you'd dodge--" Nerlin began to say, but then Pyxis jumped at him and the two fledglings started tussling playfully. Pyxis used her wings to begin shovelling snow directly onto Nerlin's head, but he reacted quickly and pushed her off, rolling her onto her back before pinning her down. "Truce, truce! I call truce!"

"Truce, but only cause you're losing." Pyxis slumped back and relaxed. It was like an inverse of the mock duel they'd fought just after hunting the breakhorn. Now she was on her back, with Nerlin's weight pinning her down. "So this is snow! It's fun."

Nerlin shivered, and she could feel the tremble running through his body, making their scales rub against each other's. "It's cold! Aren't you cold?"

"No," said Pyxis truthfully. She was lying down with her back and wings touching the snow, yet she didn't feel cold at all.

"Really? Not at all? That's weird. I wonder if...maybe..." Nerlin looked thoughtful. "Maybe you're an ice dragon--a frostbreather!" he suggested.

"A frostbreather? Hmm... Now that's an idea." Pyxis took a moment to consider this new idea. Frostbreathers were dragons whose affinity gave them power to create cold temperatures. Whereas firebreathers simply spat fire from their jaws, frostbreathers did the opposite. They could exhale a blast of super-cooled air, cold enough to that any water in the air would condense out into a cloud or onto nearby surfaces as frost. Despite _fire_breathing being the quintessential example of drakken magical ability, _frost_breathing was actually slightly more common, though both types of affinity were still less common than acidspitting.

All drakken had at least one type of affinity, and Pyxis wouldn't have minded at all if her magic turned out to be frostbreathing. She inhaled deeply, but then she paused. Nerlin was still lying on top of her, and if she somehow turned out to have frost affinity, she didn't want to give him frostbite on his face. She nosed at him, poking his muzzle with hers. "Uh...if you don't mind, could you..."

"What, kiss you?" Nerlin grinned in a cheeky, arrogant way which made Pyxis's neck frill perk up. "I'm glad you asked. It would be my pleasure." And then he kissed her, and Pyxis didn't mind that at all. This time was different--now there pressed up against each other, lying down chest to chest. It was a position they'd been in before, just after they'd hunted down the breakhorn during their training hunt, but they hadn't been kissing then. Now as Pyxis felt Nerlin's tongue brushing against hers, their intimate embrace made her feel a tingle in her underbelly again--the clear beginnings of arousal.

"Hmm, I don't know if you're really an ice dragon. You feel so...warm," Nerlin murmured. Then he stopped and pushed himself to his feet, lifting his weight off her. "The snow's cold, though. My paws are going numb."

For a moment Pyxis was sorely tempted to grab Nerlin and pull him back down against her. Finally her curiosity about her own potential magic won out over her desire to get even more physical with her expedition partner, but only just barely. It was a close thing, though. If they'd been somewhere else other than on a snowy mountainside, perhaps her decision would have gone the other way.

Rolling to her feet, Pyxis inhaled as deeply as she could. She tried to somehow focus her concentration, and then she blew out through her mouth. "Huuuh!" She could see her breath condensing into a fog, but that was just from the chilly mountain temperatures instead of her innate magical ability. "This isn't working. How do I... How do frostbreathers breathe frost?"

"How would I know? I can't use magic." Nerlin sat down on his haunches, though he instantly jumped back to his feet. "Oo, that's cold. My rump is cold."

Reaching down, Pyxis brought up a pawful of snow. Now that she thought about it, the idea that she was a frostbreather seemed to click in her mind. She clenched her paw tightly, squeezing the snow until some of it melted into water, but still her paw pads didn't feel uncomfortable from the cold. She even tried rubbing the snow against her chest, but yet that still didn't make her feel the stinging chill. It just felt wet and cool, but not unpleasant at all. "I think... frost affinity makes sense. But how? No one's ever thought me how I actually use magic."

Nerlin turned to stare curiously at her, and now his expression was all serious and intense. "All I've ever heard is that you just want to do it, and it happens. Skill comes from practice and the mind, but magic comes from within, from will." He leaned in closer, not taking his eyes off her. "So tell me, Pyxis, are you a drakka or not? Why don't you _impress_me?"

Pyxis swallowed quietly, but she couldn't break Nerlin's gaze. He was close now, close enough to kiss her again, but he didn't. He just watched, waiting to see what she would do, waiting to see if she could impress him. Pyxis closed her eyes, but she could still feel Nerlin's gaze on her.

Then that was the moment when she finally felt it. The feeling of magic was difficult, almost impossible to describe. It was an exciting, strangely empowering sensation that ran through her body, ending up in her chest. The energy felt like potential, as if she could just do whatever she wanted, and in that moment Pyxis intuitively grasped why drakken talked about magic as just something they did. She took a deep breath as that empowering sensation built, growing until it felt like too much for her to handle, and then she let it out. The power in her chest leapt outwards, surging up through her throat.

"Ha!" Pyxis raised her head straight upwards, and the noise she made wasn't a roar or even a shout, but out from her jaws came frostbreath. A cone of fog instantly condensed out of the air, forming a pillar of cloud that extended about one body length from her open jaws, until the frost magic's power ended and the air warmed above the dew point. Pyxis snapped her jaws shut, watching with awe as the fog cloud spread out and slowly dissipated. "Did I do it...?" she murmured.

Nerlin was watching as well, but his gaze kept darting from the dissipating fog cloud back to her. From a few seconds he was completely silent, then all his quiet intensity was swept away by excitement which was just as passionate. "You...you did it! You actually did it! Ohhhh! You're a frostbreather! I knew it! Whoooo! Pyxis! Pyxis!" He jumped around her, flapping his wings in excitement. "Do it again, do it again!"

Pyxis blinked. It felt like the moment had passed. The sensation of power was gone, and she'd somehow gone back to just being a magicless fledgling. "I don't know if can..." she told him, but she tried anyway. Surprisingly enough, once she tried to summon that power in her chest, the magic obeyed instantly. This time her frost came more focused--she was prepared for it, and the billowing blast of icy magic went about twice as far. Instead of stopping the magic right away, Pyxis tried to let it flow, moving her head around and watching with amusement as more and more fog condensed out of the air. She swept her frostbreath around, creating fog and frost in every direction except where Nerlin was standing.

As she kept up the frostbreathing, the power in her chest started to wane until eventually she could use it no more. Pyxis cut off her magic, and suddenly she realized just how _strenuous_it had been to use her affinity. It wasn't that she was literally out of breath or panting, but it just felt like she was more tired than before. "Look at that! I did it! That's...I did it. Frost affinity."

Nerlin nodded, but he had his wings wrapped around himself and he'd started to shiver. "You did! It's really great, bu--but it's also really cold!" He grinned at her, though his teeth were chattering.

"Sorry," Pyxis said, her neck frill drooping in embarrassment. Frost affinity dragons were much less susceptible to cold temperatures, and she hadn't noticed that all her frostbreathing had cooled down the air around them. "Are you alright? Let me warm you up." Leaping through the thick snow, she jumped towards Nerlin and wrapped her wings around him in a hug.

"Not so cold anymore. I'll be alright." Nerlin grinned, and he leaned into her embrace. "Can we just...get back in the air? I want to get moving again so I can get warmed up."

Pyxis nodded her head. Up in the sky the air was cold as well, but at least if they were flapping their wings then their muscles would be generating heat. She dropped her wings, releasing Nerlin from her hug. "Onwards, then."

Nerlin flicked his wings open. "Onwards!"



Even as they continued their flight heading south-westwards, Pyxis kept experimenting with her newfound power. She could sense how the magic seemed to start in her chest and blast out through her jaws. Her efforts left a foggy cloud of condensation trailing behind them each time she used her frostbreath.

With his expedition partner so engrossed in testing out her magic, Nerlin lead the way. Occasionally he would glance back to watch Pyxis, but mostly he kept his head forward and focused on flying straight. The two young dragons talked, curiously discussing this new development. Pyxis was intrigued and excited, whereas Nerlin was fascinated and very curious to hear about what using magic felt like.

Deep down, Nerlin was a little bit envious of Pyxis's magic. Not that he really yearned to have frost affinity, though it wasn't a bad sort of magic to have and there were numerous possible vocations for frostbreather dragons, but he just wished that he had magic of his own. Magic was magic! The ability to use magic was what distinguished adult drakken from immature fledglings, and Nerlin just found that slightly...embarrassing. Previously they'd been two fledglings flying on an expedition together, but now Pyxis was a drakka, and yet he was still a fledgling. Not that he was worried about Pyxis possibly thinking less of him, but it simply felt disempowering for him to see her keep using her magic, sending out blasts of foggy, chilly air with seemingly little effort. At first Nerlin tried to supress and ignore these unpleasant emotions, but then he changed his mind and decided to try and sort them out.

Why was he feeling this discontentment at seeing Pyxis playful test out her magic? He ought to be excited and happy on behalf on his friend, and that had been his initial gut reaction, but now there was a minor part of his mind which had also become envious. What did I expect? Nerlin wondered. It was hardly a big surprise that something like this had happened. After all, for most fledglings, the wilderness survival expedition was one of their first chances to experience independence and freedom in this particular manner. There were many older dragons who cited this expedition as the first time they'd learned to use their magic, away from the scrutiny and pressure of normal everyday life. And so once again Nerlin tried to approach the question--what had he expected? Had he really expected they would both get their magic simultaneously? Or had he been selfish enough to presume that his magic would manifest before Pyxis's? She was a few months older than him, after all.

In all the times Nerlin had fantasized about that life changing moment when he discovered his own magic, he had come up with scenarios ranging from mundane to extraordinary. He might have just woken up one day and discovered he could shift water with his mind, or create electric sparks between his paws. Or perhaps it would be something more dramatic, such as if he'd been involved in a mid-air collision while flying around the city, only to escape injuries because he had healing affinity and his body had automatically fixed the wounds.

Thinking back now, Nerlin wondered what would have happened if the bear which had strolled into their campsite had been more aggressive. If instead of just walking away it had attacked, he and Pyxis would have been forced to defend themselves, and few scenarios were more stressful than combat. Nerlin could see it in his head now--the bear charging towards them, barrelling down to maul and kill. The terrifying intensity of such an attack would probably have driven at least one of them to use their magic, if not both. He imagined that Pyxis would have been intimidated, but she'd probably have stood her ground, especially with him just beside her. She would have opened her jaws and blasted the bear with her frostbreath, while he would have leapt forward with claws extended and teeth bared, using whatever his magic was--throwing rocks, blasting it with a gust of wind, or maybe pulling a wave from the lake? Or so he imagined.

In reality, Nerlin had to admit that he didn't know what would have happened. Perhaps they would both have stood their ground, or perhaps they'd just have panicked and hurried leapt into flight, leaving the bear angrily standing on the ground and unable to reach them as they flapped into the air. But it was nice to just imagine the two of them scared but brave, working together to fight off an angry, dangerous creature larger than them both. And then after the fight, with adrenaline still rushing through their veins, who knows what else might have happened?

Nerlin snorted and shook his head. He picked up a bit of speed, flapping his wings hard and letting that mild exertion distract him from his salacious thoughts. Now that was really taking the fantasizing too far. Or was it? Pyxis had already expressed interest in him, and Nerlin knew that their attraction was mutual. Even this morning, Pyxis had openly expressed curiosity at seeing what his phallus looked like. If he were more suave and confident he would probably already have seduced her, but instead he hadn't even tried. They'd both just awkwardly bumbled around the issue, not quite acknowledging what they were feeling for each other.

This really seemed like the sort of thing that adults would be able to maturely discuss, which brought Nerlin back to what he'd been thinking about earlier. Pyxis was an adult. She had magic, which by definition made her a drakka and not a fledgling anymore. However, in comparison he was still just a fledgling without magic--a child, legally and societally speaking. And something about that just didn't sit right. It wasn't that he resented her, it was just that he wanted to impress her, and having magic was inherently impressive. But did that really matter? Perhaps he was overthinking the whole matter. He wanted the best for Pyxis, he wanted the best for himself, and he wanted everything to work out nicely between them.

Pyxis suddenly spoke up, interrupting Nerlin's musings. "Strong headwind! Can we slow down? Please?"

"Sorry!" Nerlin immediately slowed his flight. Lost in thought, he'd started to pick up speed without thinking about it. Though for him this faster speed was manageable, he didn't want Pyxis to be tired out. The air had been calm and smooth as they flew through the morning, but now the sky was increasingly being filled with large, puffy clouds, and in the distance straight ahead he could see darker rainclouds. "Is that a storm system? Right in front of us?"

"Could be. Do we want to try and fly around it? I think we've left the Julnirs by now," Pyxis replied.

Reaching to his flight harness, Nerlin once again took out his navigational chart. They'd been flying steadily for quite a few hours now, and by this time they should have crossed past the end of the Julnir Mountain Range. "If we've passed the Julnirs, we should be coming up on the ocean soon." Their plan had to been to fly southwest until they reached the ocean, then turn and fly south along the coastline until they reached Maringe Harbour, where they would then turn east and fly back towards home--Avaeria, the City of Wings.

Glancing back, Nerlin saw that Pyxis had taken out her map as well. It was awkward to glance down at a map while trying to keep flying straight. "Yes, but if that's a storm, do we want to just fly right through it? Those clouds look dark and I don't want to get caught out in the open. Past the Julnirs it's all just flatland around here. We'd have to try and find a cave or a tree, to try and take shelter?" Pyxis said.

Nerlin squinted as he gazed into the distance, trying to analyse the storm that was so far off it was just barely even visible. For dragons in flight, storms were always a force to be reckoned with, especially in this part of the world. Drakken-controlled territory was infamous for having incredibly powerful and destructive storms, but the master hunters aboard Majestic had told them that truly powerful storms were unlikely at this time of year. "Once we reach the ocean, there should be more settlements where we can take shelter if those clouds thicken into a heavy storm. We're still a bit too far out to plan a reroute," Nerlin decided.

And so they flew on, holding to course.



Less than an hour later, the two young dragons were fast approaching the boundary of the storm. From afar the weather system resembled nothing more than some dark clouds, but from up close it was colossal. From horizon to horizon it was grey and stormy. Towering pillars of cloud filled the sky, completely obscuring the sun behind their dense layers. Bolts of lightning leapt across from cloud to cloud, arcing in flickering, blinding streaks of immense electrical power. The air was becoming increasingly turbulent, and steady flight was getting harder as wind shear threw them from side to side.

"I don't want to fly through that!" Nerlin yelled, and Pyxis couldn't agree more. But by now it was too late to try and avoid the storm. A strong tailwind had picked up, pushing them forward and into the tempest.

"We need to... to land!" Pyxis shouted. She could feel her hearts pounding in her chest, both from exhaustion and from fear. It was very dangerous to fly in storms, and this was no gentle drizzle. For her, it was a struggle to even maintain level flight against all the turbulent air, although Nerlin's wingbeats were still strong and confident.

"...must be near... ke... Tris!" Nerlin yelled, but his voice was drowned out by the roaring sound of the wind. He was clutching his navigational chart in a paw, and for the last half hour they'd been trying to locate one of the coastal settlements where they could sit out the storm.

Pyxis couldn't quite hear her expedition partner, but they were almost out of time. The calm, blue skies of the Julnir Mountain Range seemed like a distant memory. Now they'd reached the coast, and a fierce storm was brewing. They weren't even flying straight anymore. Thick grey clouds were everywhere, and the two dragons changed course every few minutes just trying to avoid flying into cloud columns, where snow and sleet swirled in violent gusts of wind. They were still barely on the outskirts of the storm system, but once they entered it would be near impossible to keep flying.

Pyxis could see rain and hail pouring from the clouds, getting closer and closer for every minute they remained airborne. With the storm darkening the skies, the coastal landscape far below looked unfriendly and intimidating. The beaches should have looked beautiful and scenic, but now the waves were harshly pounding against the shoreline. She was on the verge of suggesting that they just land out in the wilderness to seek shelter anywhere possible. There weren't any trees, just bushes and grass, but it was better to be on the ground and soaked rather than remain in the air and at risk of a crash. "Nerlin! We need to--"

Just as Pyxis was speaking, Nerlin let out a relieved shout. "There! There! You see it? There!" He swept his wings back and went into a quick descent.

Pyxis had no idea what her expedition partner was talking about, but she followed him as they dropped out of the skies. The clouds were all around them, and it was taking all her strength just to fight the gales blowing them off course. Even in a dive where she could trade altitude for speed, it took a huge amount of concentration to fly straight amidst all the wind shear. Looking down, the ground was fast approaching, but the sandy beaches had been replaced by jagged cliffs.

And then finally she saw it--standing tall at the edge of the cliffs was a lighthouse.



The rumble of thunder shook the air as Nerlin landed. Sheets of rain were beginning to come down, but the wind was so strong that the water was going sideways just as quickly as it went downwards. Nerlin dashed forward towards the lighthouse--he has been hoped that someone would have seen them, but there was no welcome from the towering structure.

Pyxis was right behind him, and together the sprinted around the lighthouse's exterior, trying to find the entrance. When they found a wooden door, Nerlin didn't bother to knock. He pushed the door's handle bar and it didn't move, but when he grabbed the bar and pulled, it swung open with only a moderate resistance. Hurriedly they both scrambled inside just as the rain began to pelt down in earnest. Just after Pyxis slipped through the doorway, the wind blew the door shut with a slam.

And then...they paused. The inside of the lighthouse was hollow, forming one large, cylindrical room, but it was mostly empty. The floor and walls were made of rock, moulded and smoothened by stone magic, but the room was barren besides a simple wooden table placed in the centre and some cupboards sitting by the side. A layer of dirt and dust covered the floor.

"It's empty?" Pyxis murmured quietly. She was standing close beside Nerlin, and she loosely entwined the tip of her tail with his. "This place looks abandoned."

"Hello? Anyone in here?!" Nerlin called. Pyxis tensed as he yelled, but there was no response. "That's weird." Nerlin shook himself all over, flicking off the droplets of rain on his body. "When I was flying, I thought I saw that the lighthouse beacon was lit. But that can't be if it's abandoned."

A circular staircase curved around the whole room, circling the inside of the lighthouse. The whole room was dark, but light was dimly shining in from windows mounted at regular distances going up the staircase. Moving forward, Nerlin headed to the stairs and slowly walked upstairs. Pyxis followed closely behind. As they slowly ascended the lighthouse, the windows gave them a glimpse of the outside world, where weather was pouring down relentlessly. Sharp, clapping thunder suddenly boomed from a nearby lightning strike, and the rain was a constant platter against the walls.

Even on the inside, the lighthouse smelled like the sea breeze, albeit not as fresh. When the two young dragons finally reached the top level, the circular staircase ended in a slightly smaller room which had glass windows on all sides. An immense crystalline lamp sat right in the middle of this apex room, with tracked grooves in the ground that indicate how it would have spun, but the lighthouse was dark. The only light came from outside. The grey sky barely illuminated the room, with lightning bolts occasionally providing harsh flashes of light.

Nerlin curiously went to investigate the lamp, but both the illumination and the energy storage crystals were missing. Presumably they'd been removed when this lighthouse had been decommissioned. "Hmm, no way this could have been lit. I must have just seen lighting reflected in the glass, and I mistook that flash for a sweeping lighthouse beam?"

"That must be it. Or maybe this lighthouse is just haunted. I don't know how you even managed to spot this place, flying out in all that." Pyxis hesitantly approached the windows which ran from floor to ceiling. Even as wind, rain, and even hail battered against the glass, the windows held strong and didn't even rattle. A short balcony ran around this upper level, but there would be no going outside in such harsh weather. "That's a real storm. I'm glad we aren't out there."

Nerlin came up and stood beside her, and silently the two young dragons entwined tails again. Together they watched the storm as it raged all around them.



After some time spent staring at the storm, Nerlin took out his navigational chart and they tried to guess where their current location. Since the lighthouse was disused, it wasn't marked out on the map, but they could still make a rough estimate of which part of the coastline they were at. They'd made good time, and even with this storm they would probably still be able to return home within a few more days.

Pyxis lay down and continued staring out at the heavy rain. She was tired out from the hours they'd spent flying, especially those last few moments where they'd be fighting hard against gusting winds. Nerlin stayed with her for a while, then he went back to exploring the lighthouse.

Feeling curious, he took out a portable lantern from the appropriate pouch in his flight harness and tried placing it right where the lighthouse's lamp would have been. The lantern's illumination crystal was tiny compared to the immense crystal which would have sat at this spot. There was still a huge lens array in place, and it amused Nerlin to see his lantern looking vastly magnified, though it was surely still too dim for that focused beam to pierce out into the storm, as the lighthouse's proper light would have done.

Looking up at the ceiling, Nerlin saw some that some thick metal cables stretched from the empty crystal slots to the roof. Though the lighthouse was disused and its lamp was gone, some energy circuits remained to absorb lightning bolts which struck the tower, otherwise harsh coastal weather would quickly have destroyed the structure within a few years. Such was the plight of this part of the world--storms were a constant threat, but drakken had learned to master the weather and bend it to serve them. If this lighthouse had not been decommissioned, the energy from lightning bolts would be stored as raw magic which would eventually power the beacon here, shining light into the darkness.

Now that he had thoroughly explored the upper room, Nerlin went downstairs to explore the rest of the lighthouse. Unfortunately, there wasn't much to see. The lighthouse must have been abandoned for at least a decade or possibly longer, but there was no evidence to suggest why it was no longer in use. Even though airships could rely on their navigational instruments to keep them flying in the correct direction, visual beacons like this lighthouse were still useful to keep track of where you were. As for why exactly this particular lighthouse was now disused, there was no clue. Perhaps the trade route it had once marked was no longer in use, or perhaps there was some other reason.

Nerlin looked through the cupboards, but they were all empty. Back when it was still operational, the lighthouse would have stored food and drink rations for travellers (flying on airships or on the wing) who might have stopped here, but now it had been cleared out. This was no problem. Nerlin reached down to his flight harness and tapped the pouch where his ration bars were stored. Dinner would be plain and cold, but eating ration bars was better than going hungry. Certainly the lighthouse could still provide shelter and insulation from the raging storm outside.

After spending some time looking all around the inside of the lighthouse and peering at the furniture, Nerlin went back up to the apex room. Pyxis had been asleep with her tail in her mouth, but she jerked awake on hearing Nerlin's footsteps.

"Sorry to wake you," Nerlin said.

Pyxis yawned widely, and she flicked her neck frill up and down a few times. "No, it's alright. Did you find anything?"

"This lighthouse is all deserted, but I did find this map in a drawer." Nerlin had found a rolled-up map in one of the cupboards, which he spread out on the ground. Then he took out the expedition map and placed them side by side to compare. "We're here. At this part of the coastline, you see where they marked it? That mark is this lighthouse."

Pyxis leaned over and took a look at the maps. The lighthouse map covered far less ground, but it was in greater detail, indicating the local topography as well as nearby landmarks. "I see it, yes. Which means that Lake Tris should actually be just past the horizon there," she said, pointing out the window and further down the coastline. It was hard to see very far as heavy rain continued to obscure their view of the outside world. "This storm doesn't seem to be letting up. I think it's getting too late for us to fly and the skies won't clear before sundown."

Nerlin nodded. "Hopefully the weather clears be tomorrow morning so we can continue flying. Until then, I guess we should set up camp?"

"Does it count as a _camp_if we're just spending the night inside a lighthouse? It's not really a campsite, is it?" Pyxis wondered.

"We can't start a fire indoors, but I doubt it will get too cold inside here. It'll be warmer now that we're not so high in the mountains." Nerlin paused as he thought about this. "Although I suppose being cold isn't a problem for you since you're a frostbreather. I'll be the one feeling cold."

Pyxis jumped to her feet and sat beside Nerlin, snuggling up against his side again. "Not if I have anything to say about it! I'll keep you warm." She stayed leaned up against him for a moment, then she stopped and pulled at her flight harness. "Where are we going to sleep? Downstairs at ground level, or up here?"

Nerlin tapped his paw against the ground. "The floor up here is made from metal, but downstairs is stone so it'll be warmer. The view up here is nicer though." He glanced around, taking in the panoramic sights. Up here in the apex room, the lighthouse had glass windows providing a clear view in all directions. From this lofty vantage point over the cliffs, it was possible to see far out to sea and even some considerable distance over the land. Not as good a view as being in flight, but still a reasonably long distance. Rain continued to pour down, and the ocean was filled with churning waves which pounded against the cliffs far below, throwing foam and spray over the rocks.

"Downstairs, then," Pyxis decided. "Even if the view is nice, everyone would be able to see us from leagues away. Not that there's anyone out here in the wilderness, but whatever."

The two dragons went to the lower level and removed their flight harnesses, leaving the equipment at the side of the room. They set up their sleeping bags again, and then they both took out their lanterns. Each of the rectangular lanterns was powered by a tiny crystal charged with fire magic. Nerlin turned the small knob embedded in the base of his lantern and it flared to life, filling the room with light but not any warmth. "I think one lantern is bright enough. Leave your lantern off in case we need it for some other night," he told Pyxis.

Pyxis nodded. She sat down on her sleeping bag and stared closely at her own lantern, its crystal dark and unlit. "To think...a giant version of one of these crystals used to be upstairs, shining outwards to guide dragons here--a beacon in the darkness."

"Except now this lighthouse is abandoned. No one but us." Nerlin sat down on his own sleeping bag, right beside Pyxis, and they took out their books again to wait. The storm continued on through the late afternoon, and into the evening.



With the lantern placed in the middle of the room and casting a steady illumination, Nerlin didn't notice that evening had come until he looked out the window and realized that the sky was getting darker. The lightning and thunder had stopped but the rain continued on, steadily pouring down and not changing in intensity. "Almost night time, but it's still raining."

Lying right beside him, Pyxis opened her eyes and glanced around. A faster reader than he was, she'd finished her book and started napping in the late afternoon. "Yeah. Are you hungry? I'm feeling a bit peckish. I could use a snack." Slowly getting to her feet, she yawned and walked over to their flight harnesses. Reaching into a pouch, she pulled out a couple of ration bars. "You want some?"

"Yes please. I'll take one too," Nerlin replied.

Pyxis took out another ration bar for him, and she also pulled the water packs from both their flight harnesses. Although food was essential to provide the energy for them to continue their expedition, water was the more important resource. Starvation would take a long time to kill them, dehydration far less so. Pyxis sat back down on her sleeping bag and passed a ration bar to Nerlin, along with his water pack. "Here you go."

"Thank you." Nerlin took a long sip from the drinking tube of his water pack, then he unwrapped the ration bar and munched on it. Referring to the lighthouse's map again, he tapped a nearby area. "My water pack is almost empty. Hmm...this old map says that the closest fresh water is from this river over here."

"You want to walk all the way there in this rain?" Pyxis asked, her neck frill rising in surprise. "It's still raining pretty heavily, and it'll be dark soon."

"No, I'm not going now. We've got enough water for tonight, but tomorrow we should refill our water packs before we fly off," Nerlin explained. Taking a few big bites, he finished off his ration bar and kept the wrapper inside a flight harness pouch meant for trash. "Speaking of water, I think I actually have to go out in to rain anyway."

"What? Why?"

"Cause I need to relieve myself." Nerlin stood up. His bladder had been feeling near full for a while now, but he'd been trying to hold it in. Now that the storm was showing no signs of weakening, he had best get this bit of unpleasantry over with before it got fully dark.

Nerlin walked over towards the doorway leading out of the lighthouse. Pyxis followed after him, trotting on three legs and she was still chewing on her ration bar. "You're going out there? In all this rain?"

"There's no place inside here for me to urinate, so I'll just brave the storm. The rain isn't _that_heavy," Nerlin said. Right at that moment, a heavy gust of wind made the door shudder.

Pyxis didn't look convinced. "Uh...are you sure about that? You'll be drenched," she warned.

"I'll be fine. Even if the rain is heavy, it's just water. Water won't kill me," Nerlin replied, trying to sound confident. The urge from his bladder felt compelling enough that he almost believed what he was saying about rain. Deciding not to hesitate further, he placed his shoulder against the door's push bar and shoved it open. Then he stepped out into the full force of the tempest.



Nerlin immediately regretted his decision as he was instantly soaked from nose to tail by water showering down on him. The thunder and lightning might have stopped, but the rain was unabated. He could hear Pyxis shouting something but her voice was drowned out by the howling wind. The wind quickly blew the door shut behind him and nearly pinched his tail.

Nerlin stumbled back towards the lighthouse door, reaching a paw for the door's handle bar. For one moment he was blindly trying to pull the door open, then he managed to get a hold of himself. "I'm already drenched. Might as well do what I came out here to do..." he thought to himself, or maybe he was desperately trying to rationalize his decision.

Beyond just drenching him, the torrential downpour also made it near impossible to see as rain pelted down on his scales and got in his eyes. Nerlin didn't even dare to raise his wing to shield his eyes. If he unfurled his wings at all, the gusting winds might have blown him off his feet.

What had he been thinking? That he could just stroll out into a coastal storm and find a bush to relieve himself behind? Nerlin hurriedly trotted forward, deciding he would just go a short distance away from the lighthouse so that Pyxis wouldn't see him, but after a few seconds he stumbled to a halt. With any clear clue of which way he was heading, it was just as likely he'd get lost, or worse, he'd run off the cliff and tumble into the ocean.

"This was stupid!" Nerlin yelled out to himself, but his voice was snatched away by the wind. Crouching down, he spread his hindlegs and tried to relieve himself right there. He clenched down the muscles which would push his penis out of his genital slit, and then he tried to get his bladder to release. For a long moment nothing happened, then finally his muscles relaxed and he felt a familiar warmth streaming out of him. Against all the odds, at this exact moment the wind lessened slightly, which had the fortunate effect of not blowing his urine all over his legs and underside, though Nerlin was so thoroughly drenched that he didn't think it would even have been noticeable.

You never realize just how long this process takes until you find yourself trying to do it in the middle of a storm, Nerlin mused. Ten seconds, twenty seconds, and then he was done. The red-scaled fledgling hurriedly shook his hips to dislodge any stray drops of urine, and this motion was aided by his shivering. The wind and the rain were rapidly wicking away heat from his body, chilling him even faster than the mountaintop snow had.

"And the master hunters said storms were unlikely!" Nerlin yelled, not that there was anyone to hear his grumbling. Then he turned around and ran back towards the lighthouse.



Pyxis stepped backwards as the lighthouse door swung open and Nerlin hurriedly scrambled back inside. Without either of them needing to do anything, the force of the wind slammed the heavy wooden door behind him.

"Oh, whoa!" Nerlin groaned. He shook himself all over, sending water droplets flying off his scales. Even after water was no longer scattering off his body, he kept shaking. He was shivering, Pyxis realized.

"Are you alright?" she asked.

"I--I'm fine! Just a little c--cold..." Nerlin replied, his teeth chattering. He stumbled forward towards the sleeping bags and dropped down onto them, still shivering. "That was no--not worth it..."

"I told you that you'd get drenched." Pyxis reached for her sleeping bag and was about to throw it over Nerlin like a blanket, but then she had a better idea. Flopping down on top of her expedition partner's back, she wrapped her wings around his sides like they were the blankets. "Looks like it really is up to me to keep you warm."

"Th--thanks... I owe you." Lying underneath her, Nerlin's shivers slowly stopped over the course of a minute or so. His scales still felt faintly damp. "This feels very comfortable, actually."

"Hmm. Me too. I like it." Pyxis snuggled up against Nerlin's back and enjoyed the feeling of her body pressed up against his body. "You know, if we're talking about things owed, this morning we didn't get to finish up our deal, did we?" Without really thinking about it, the words slipped from her mouth. "Wait, what? I mean... um... I was just... thinking about how when drakes have to pass water, it comes out through the... uh... the you know what. Your...your thing."

Nerlin snorted in amusement, which made Pyxis feel embarrassed. "Are you too embarrassed to say the word again?"

"I am not... not embarrassed! I'm an adult!" Pyxis sprung to her feet and trotted around Nerlin till she was pushing her shoulder against his side. She took a deep breath, feeling her neck frill perk up. "Penis! So there, I've said it. Not embarrassed! Now let me see it. Roll over."

"I..." For a moment Nerlin looked like he was going to make some snappy retort, but instead he snapped his jaw shut and obediently rolled over onto his back.

Pyxis snagged the lantern's handle with the tip of her tail and brought it over to get more illumination. She sat down next to Nerlin and placed a forepaw on his chest. "Alright, so... So! This is a first. I've never done anything like this before..."

Lying flat on his back, Nerlin had curled his neck upwards to watch her. Even in the shadowy lighting, he had a wide-eyed expression on his face. "Me neither. What exactly _are_we doing?"

"Good question. I'm not quite sure, so I'm just going to keep going until I run out of bravery." Pyxis slowly slid her paw down Nerlin's chest, towards his underbelly. His scales felt smooth and flat, but underneath there was the toned hardness of well-exercised muscle. As her paw went lower, Pyxis used her other paw to spread Nerlin's hindlegs apart and get more light right there, where she really wanted to see things.

Nerlin's penis was still completely retracted, so his genital slit resembled a thin cleft between the fine scales of his underbelly. But as a male, his slit was further from his tail, just a bit higher upwards, and slightly longer overall compared to Pyxis's own genital slit. It was fascinating to examine and see the differences in this one area. With claws carefully retracted, Pyxis gently started poking and prodding at Nerlin's genital slit. She even tried slipping a digit into his slit, only to immediately meet warm, fleshy resistance instead of finding a tubular orifice.

"Oh." Nerlin let out a soft, almost surprised grunt at the sudden intrusion. His muscles tightened up, clenching the joint of her digit and halting any further movement.

"Sorry. Did that hurt?" Pyxis asked, turning her head back to stare at her expedition partner.

Nerlin shook his head, and slowly Pyxis felt Nerlin's slit muscles relax. "No, it's just sensitive inside there. Ooh..." He made another pleasured noise as Pyxis slowly moved her digit about, feeling about inside his slit.

Without a few seconds, Pyxis felt her digit start to be pushed out as Nerlin's penis began to inflate with blood. She lifted her paw away and watched as he quickly grew partially erect, his penis pushing out of his genital slit like a spire. "Haha, look at that. It can just sort of...pop out like a... uh..." Pyxis waved her paw around, but she wasn't quite sure of an appropriate simile. "That's so weird."

Nerlin blinked. "Is it weird?" he asked.

"I don't mean you're weird. Not in a bad way. I just mean--penises are weird, aren't they? Everything here is so dynamic. Is that a good word to describe it? I think it is." Pyxis hesitantly prodded Nerlin's penis, then she wrapped her paw around his length. The whole organ felt warm and spongy. Even as she held it, she could feel a faint throbbing which was Nerlin's heartbeat.

"Wow, just look at this thing! It wasn't here before, but now it is. And it's...it's getting bigger!" Still in Pyxis's grasp, Nerlin's penis continued to engorge and grow longer, thicker, and even stiffer than before as it inflated with blood. Pyxis's neck frill twitched, and she once again turned around to stare at her friend. "Are you making it get bigger? Stop that."

Nerlin raised an eye ridge and shook his head. "I really can't. It's just a reflex. If you touch me down there, things get erect."

"Hehehe!" Pyxis burst out into giggles again. "Things get erect? Yes! Yes! I touch you down there and things get erect! Hahahaha! This is so silly. Oh wow, it's still getting bigger." Pyxis kept her paw on Nerlin's erection until it finally seemed to reach maximum size.

Her only previous comparison was a sex toy which she owned, but that hardly compared with the real deal. Nerlin's penis matched the shape and general size as expected, though it was actually slightly larger than what she'd imagined. Not overly huge, but it was impressive. "Just look at this thing!" she murmured.

"Yeah, I've... I've looked at it before," Nerlin replied.

Tilting her head, Pyxis mentally compared what she was currently seeing with what she'd seen only a minute ago. "How does something so big just fit up in there?" she asked, patting a paw on the side of Nerlin's genital slit. A second thought leapt into her mind, and she instantly voiced it. "And just imagine--all that is supposed to go inside me? I don't know if it'll fit."

Now it was Nerlin's turn to laugh. "Hah..." He chuckled, and Pyxis saw him grin. "Oh, I'm imagining it..."

"Are you? Well, uh..." Pyxis tried to think up some witty and preferably sexy retort, but she came up blank. Instead she settled for leaning in and giving him a quick kiss, letting her snout touch against his. Even after she'd pulled back, Nerlin still looked enthralled by her gaze.

"Now where were we?" Pyxis turned her attention back to Nerlin's groin, and she slowly examined his reproductive organ, using both paws to handle it. Even the texture wasn't what she'd expected--it was like there was a soft cladding of flesh running over an inner core of much more rigid, blood-engorged tissue. That rigid core felt like it continued deeper into Nerlin's body, stiffening his whole penis so it didn't really dangle or swing loosely. "This is... nothing at all like a tail," Pyxis said.

"A tail? You expected a penis to be like a tail?" Nerlin asked.

"No! Uh, just that sometimes people call it a second tail, you know?" Pyxis continued.

"That's just slang. Tails are prehensile, penises aren't. Did you think I could just move it around and grab things with it? Haha, or maybe I could dip the tip in ink and write with it? Hahaha--oh!" Nerlin's laughter was cut off when Pyxis used the tip of her tail to playfully jab his side.

"Shut up! Anyway, I also thought that maybe a penis might be a bit like a tail because I've heard that drakka sometimes use their tail to pleasure themselves? Like they curl their tail around and stick it in? So I thought that maybe a drake's penis would be something like that?" Pyxis explained, thinking back to one of her own experiences.

Nerlin immediately connected the dots. "Have you ever done something like that?"

Pyxis almost denied it automatically out of a sense of embarrassment, but the words froze on her tongue. "What do you think? Do you think I've masturbated with my tail before?"

"I really don't know," Nerlin admitted. "I've always thought of you as shy and extra cute, and you seem to get embarrassed easily. But then again, I'm not sure if that reflects your willingness to try that sort of thing. I, uh..."

His voice trailed off as Pyxis got to her feet and turned so that her rear was facing Nerlin's head. Then she slowly curled her tail around, moving it closer and closer to her haunches until she halted just before the tip would have touched her genital slit. Nerlin was, of course, watching with a wide-eyed expression. Pyxis flicked her tail from side to side, then turned back around and she sat back down. "That's...that's a yes, in case you didn't get the message," she muttered.

"The message is seared into my brain, and will probably turn up in some of my dreams," Nerlin replied, which made Pyxis giggle.

"Hehe." Pyxis continued her examination of Nerlin's reproductive anatomy, taking in all the numerous differences from what she'd expected. Nerlin's penis was so much _warmer_than she'd anticipated, but that seemed logical for an organ whose rigidity depending on blood flow. It felt pleasantly thick in the grip of her paw, yet it was also smooth and sleekly curved to a tip, and right down at the base there was a roundish bulge just before it anchored into his genital slit.

Pyxis knew what that was called--a knot. A drake's knot, which was a part of his anatomy that would briefly lock him into the drakka being mated, ensuring that his ejaculation only occurred whilst penetrated deepest. Pyxis found herself curious what that would feel like--to have Nerlin's erection buried inside her, feeling his knot swell up as he hit an orgasmic peak. Her own genital slit felt tingly and sensitive just at the thought.

She slowly moved down Nerlin's length, feeling the smooth, sensitive flesh sliding against her paw pads. When she reached the bottom, she wrapped her paw around Nerlin's knot. Here the flesh felt especially soft and spongy. Then she tried to squeeze his knot, and suddenly his whole penis twitched in her grasp.

Pyxis jerked her head backwards and snatched her paws away from Nerlin's erection. "Ah! Oh it moved!" she exclaimed automatically, then once again she found herself giggling uncontrollably. "Hehehehe... It moved! I didn't expect that. Ahahaha!" She lightly slapped Nerlin's underbelly.

Nerlin was watching her with an expression that was equal parts lust and amusement, which just made Pyxis laugh even harder. "Is my penis that funny to you?" he asked, with a grin on his face.

"Yes! Absolutely yes! How did you do that? I thought you said you couldn't move it?" Pyxis asked, taking deep breaths to halt her giggling.

"I can't move it around like a tail, but there's this muscle inside my underbelly which I can twitch. If I wasn't already hard, it would make my penis come out of my slit." With her paw on Nerlin's underbelly, she felt his abdominal muscles contract, and his penis jerked stiffly to an angle about equal between pointing straight upwards and straight towards his chest.

"So weird!" Pyxis grabbed Nerlin's penis again. A drop of clear liquid had begun beading at the very tip, and his genital slit looked wet with that same bodily fluid. In terms of texture and viscosity, Nerlin's pre-ejaculate felt similar to the lubrication which Pyxis knew her own reproductive organs produced while aroused, and presumably it served a similar function. Slowly moving her paws up and down, she began smearing that slick liquid over Nerlin's rigid length, earning her a pleased moan from her friend.

"Ah..."

"Does that feel good?" Pyxis asked.

Nerlin nodded his head, not taking his gaze off her. "Yes... I_very_ much like it when you do that," he murmured, in a soft desperate voice which made a tingle run down Pyxis's spine.

Pyxis moved her paws up and down one more time, then she stopped and let go. "How about a practical demonstration? Show me how you use this thing."

Nerlin frowned. "You want me to pee for you? Oh wait, no. You meant the other use."

"Yes, that. Would you mind, uh, showing me how you touch yourself?"

"You were doing a pretty good job already," Nerlin replied, but Pyxis insisted.

"Thanks! But I still want to watch you. I want to see how you like to do it." Leaning back, she took her paws off Nerlin's erection and laid her head on his chest. "Come on... I'm curious. Please?" She grabbed one of Nerlin's forepaws and guided it down to his own erection. "Go on. Show me how you touch yourself."



With Pyxis still holding the back of his paw, Nerlin slowly began to stroke up and down, stimulating his penis with comfortable familiar motions.

It was like a dream--something he had fantasized about before, but not something he had dared to believe would become reality. Pyxis was lying so close to him, her head resting on his chest and her forepaw holding his. Nerlin curled his tail around and entwined it with hers, and the moment somehow got even more intimate.

As Nerlin touched himself, his pleasure felt vastly amplified by the scenario. Even small, gentle strokes felt exquisitely blissful, and he deliberately slowed himself down as the pleasure quickly climbed ever higher.

"That looks like it feels really good," Pyxis murmured.

"Yeah..."

"Which part is most sensitive?" Pyxis asked.

"Here." As Nerlin's right paw went up and down, he used his left paw to lightly squeeze and touch his knot, holding the base of his erection. "This part here--the knot."

"Can I try?" Pyxis tapped Nerlin's left paw. He stopped and released his grip, so that Pyxis could replace his paw with her own paw, clutching him around that especially sensitive place. Her grip was lighter than his, as if she was afraid to squeeze too hard. "Nice. Ok, keep going," she prompted, and Nerlin obliged her request.

Using his other paw, he continued stroking his length and feeling pleasure slowly build inside his underbelly. Simultaneously Pyxis mimicked the motions his other paw had been doing--she rubbed and twisted her paw around his knot, stimulating him in delightful ways he couldn't control or anticipate. "You don't need to be so gentle. It feels better if you go just a bit firmer. Although if you do, I don't know how long I can last."

"You're going to ejaculate? Oh wow." Pyxis adjusted her grip, squeezing his knot tighter with her paw. It felt so wonderful that Nerlin's hindpaws clenched up and he let out another soft moan. "What does it look like when you ejaculate?" Pyxis asked.

Nerlin was finding it difficult to think straight. Somehow, Pyxis's paw wrapped around his knot felt better than his own paw ever had. "Uh... There's this white liquid which comes out the tip...?" he tried to reply.

"I know, but does it shoot out far or... just dribble? What does semen feel like? Is it slippery? Or sticky? Like all this natural lubrication you're already leaking, or like urine, or something else?" Pyxis looked genuinely curious despite the intense sexuality of the moment. "This is exactly what I mean by dynamic. Just look at this thing! It used to be all hidden up in your genital slit, but then suddenly it comes all the way out into this big reddish-pink spire which is so warm and soft and hard at the same time, and that's only the beginning. Next there's going to be semen coming out of the end! Drakes are so weird. You know what? I've seen enough."

Nerlin paused his stroking. "What?"

Shifting her position, Pyxis pried Nerlin's right paw away from his erection. Then she took over completely, rubbing most of his length with her right paw and squeezing his knot with her left paw. "My turn."

Letting his forepaws drop to his side, Nerlin just lay back and watched. It was hard to keep still, but somehow he managed. Instincts told him to buck his hips and thrust madly, but he made only small movements even as Pyxis stroked his length up and down. Her motions were constant and steady, yet still they felt unpredictable compared to when he was pleasuring himself. She was the one giving him pleasure, and it was up to her to choose how fast or slow she moved, and how firm or gentle she held him. "Is it...? Am I doing this right?" she asked.

Nerlin nodded in response. His breath was coming in desperate pants now. "Yes, oh yes. Pyxis, wow."



It was difficult to be embarrassed when you were aroused, Pyxis realized, and she was very aroused. It was just the two of them--she and Nerlin together, all alone in a quiet abandoned lighthouse with a storm raging outside. No other dragons around for leagues and leagues. The pitter-patter of falling rain provided a soothing, constant background.

Nerlin was breathing heavily. He squirmed and shuddered as Pyxis stroked him, and that was incredibly sexy just to watch. "Please tell me I'm not dreaming. This feels amazing..." he muttered.

"You're not dreaming." Pyxis kept up that steady rhythm, rubbing Nerlin's length with one paw and squeezing his knot with the other. Pre-ejaculate was readily leaking from his tip, providing ample lubrication for her to stroke his length up and down. How much more could he take before his pleasure bubbled over into an orgasm? From the sounds he was making and the blissful look on his face, it wouldn't be too long now.

Both her paws were busy, but Pyxis curled her tail around and let the tip rub against her own genital slit. Nerlin's tail was still partially entwined with hers, so it went along for the ride. Pyxis felt Nerlin's tail twitch against hers, but he stayed relaxed even as both their tail tips flicked against her genital slit. It wasn't much stimulation for her--just enough to tease, but not enough to be truly satisfying.

"Is that...? Is that your...? It's wet! Wow this is really sexy. Please keep going, I think I'm going to...ahh..." Nerlin's voice broke off into a moan, and suddenly his penis twitched in Pyxis's grip. Ahhh... ah yes, Pyx...! I should... Warning, I'm going to--enggghh!"

"Oh! Interesting!" Pyxis exclaimed. She glanced back to look at Nerlin's face, and saw that his snout was all scrunched up in a tortured expression of bliss. Hurriedly Pyxis glanced back down to Nerlin's underbelly, not wanting to miss the show. Even as she tried to keep stroking him, his penis stiffened up and his knot began to inflate in the grip of her left paw. Pyxis loosened her grip as Nerlin's knot filled with blood and grew in size until it was almost twice as big as it had been before, forming a roughly spherical bulge that looked huge. If they had actually been mating properly and he had been inside her, his knot would now have undoubtedly locked them together.

Nerlin was groaning softly, and his hips bucked upwards with desperate, frantic thrusts. "So close...! I just...need...to... Almost there..." Pyxis was eagerly waiting to see Nerlin's ejaculation, but it didn't happen. Instead, after a few seconds he slumped down and his knot started to deflate again, though his penis stayed fully rigid otherwise.

"Oh. Was that all?" Pyxis asked.

Blinking his eyes open, Nerlin stared at her. "Don't just stop. You need to keep going and squeeze my knot when it gets all big, otherwise I can't climax," he explained.

"Really? I didn't know that. Sorry." Pyxis had just been holding Nerlin's penis loosely. Now she tried clenching her paw firmly around his knot, and his hips made a small, apparently involuntary thrust.

"Hmmf! Yeah, just like that. It feels really good when you do that."

Pyxis took a deep breath. She could smell a musky, vaguely masculine odour coming from Nerlin's penis and his genital slit. And although that smell wasn't inherently pleasant, it did make her feel deeply aroused just from the idea of what they were doing. "Penises are so weird. First it's hiding away inside your genital slit, then it comes out and gets erect, then this knot gets ridiculously big." Pyxis lowered her other paw and rubbed Nerlin's knot with both paws. "Were you watching? Cause I was! And it got huge. That is never going to fit inside me. Nope."

"Are you sure? Because, ah... you don't know for sure until you try, and I would be completely okay with trying. If you want. No pressure though." Lying on his back, with his erection proudly jutting upwards and in Pyxis's paws, Nerlin somehow managed to look both attractive and endearing at the same time.

"I really like you Nerlin. I do." Even through her arousal, Pyxis felt a deeper connection with Nerlin that was unlike anything else she'd experienced before. "But I've never done anything like this at all--anything sexual or romantic with anyone else. Let's do this slowly. Step by step."

Nerlin nodded. "You're the boss. I've never been in a romantic relationship either, so this is all firsts for me."

"Why do I have to be the boss? Maybe we could take turns. Like equals. Not just expedition partners, or friends, but...partners," Pyxis replied.

"I like the sound of that," Nerlin agreed.

For a time they were both quiet and still, staring each other in the eye and enjoying the quiet intimacy of the shared moment. Then lust took over from affection, and the two young dragons let their primal desires rule. Acting out a shared, desperate need, Pyxis leaned over Nerlin and kissed him, pressing her body against his. She could feel his paws around her waist, holding her close. His wings brushed against hers, the contact electrifying.



Finally after all their awkward flirting and dancing around the issue, thing were happening. Nerlin felt his hearts pounding in his chest--eager anxiety mixing with lustful arousal, more than ever before. "Do you mind if...? Fair's fair. You got to touch me, so I want to touch you."

Pyxis's neck frill twitched, and she nodded. "I want that. I_really_ want that." She carefully lay down on her sleeping bag next to him, and Nerlin rolled onto his belly and sat up. Pyxis flicked open one wing and covered herself self-consciously. "Oh, you're looking at me! Don't judge..." Then she took a deep breath and moved her wing away again.

"Why not? I think you're gorgeous!" Nerlin felt like he could stare at Pyxis forever, admiring every tiniest detail of her slender body, from toothy snout to flicking tail tip. Blue scales everywhere--shaded from ultramarine to pale cyan, a palette of natural beauty on display. "I could just spend all day staring at you."

"What? Really? Because I think I'm pretty average." Pyxis's tail curled around her left hindleg, and she nervously fiddled with one of the large scales attached to her wing's leading edge. "Look at this... this scale is all misshapen and ugly."

"You think a single asymmetric flight scale makes you ugly?" Nerlin asked.

"Maybe not? I don't know. I just... Am I good enough?" Pyxis gestured between the two of them. "Because, Nerlin, when I look at you there's this odd feeling inside me and that odd feeling is probably love or lust or infatuation or something, but I don't know because I suck at emotions. And, oh wow, you are so hot with your muscles, and your wings, and that way you just grin at me and take my breath away. I didn't know that was actually a thing--I thought it was a figure of speech, but then you grin at me and it literally feels like I've forgotten how to breathe, so apparently that's a real thing. And where was I going with this speech? Wait no! You're grinning at me again! Oh, ohhh..."

Nerlin couldn't help but grin as Pyxis looked so adorably flustered. "You know, whatever that odd feeling is, I feel it too," he replied. "But just so that we're absolutely clear... Do you remember what I said to you, back on the airship when we were all alone on the upper deck?"

"I...uh..." Pyxis's eyes were a deep dark blue, just like the scales on her back. They were like pools of colour which Nerlin found himself enthralled by. Her frill was flat down around her neck, but it slowly perked up as he leaned closer to her.

"It was during the sunset, when we were arriving at the mountains. You remember what I said to you? Right before we kissed properly for the first time?" Nerlin continued. He didn't know how to be suave, seductive, or charming--all he knew was what he felt about Pyxis, but that was all he needed. "I said that you were beautiful, and you are. Remember?"

Pyxis nodded slowly. "How could I forget you saying something like that? It was only two days ago. Uh, not to mean that I'm going to forget it. But that's just the sort of romantic quote which sticks in the memory? Thanks, by the way! You're beautiful too--I'm not sure if I expressed that adequately. Sometimes I think I talk too little and don't say anything, and some other times I think I talk too much and still don't say anything. Shall we...should we just go back to the touching each other? Somehow you make me both really embarrassed and really aroused at the same time. Oh."

Pyxis gasped softly as Nerlin's paws strayed lower. At first his touch was gentle and hesitant as he slowly explored her supine body--tracing out the contours of her hips, thighs, tail base--then finally his caresses reached her genital slit. Pyxis squirmed about for a moment, her wings brushing against the laid-out sleeping bags, then she slowly let out a deep breath. "You know, it occurs to me now that earlier when I was touching you... using my paws to... You didn't finish, did you? I didn't do it properly. Is that rude? Should I..."

"Don't worry about that. Just relax and have fun. That's what I'm doing." Nerlin told her. His own relief could wait. Much as he was still heavily aroused, much as his body was worked up and eagerly wishing for release, he wanted his turn with Pyxis. He wanted to touch her, and to give her back some of that pleasure he had just gotten from her.

And so he did. With Pyxis lying on her back, Nerlin had easy access to feel her up. Just as she had been curious about his body, he was equally curious about hers. Pyxis's genital slit was shorter than his own, and located slightly lower towards her tail. "Since I've already showed you how I masturbate, how about you do the same? Show me how you do it," Nerlin suggested.

"I, uh, ok." Pyxis took a deep breath and spread her hindlegs. "So this is my genital slit. That's...yeah." She used her paws to gesture downwards. "It's a slit, which is actually a hole. Not quite as weird and dynamic as your equipment, unless you consider the oviduct, shell glands, and the other inside parts that are used for reproduction--making eggs and laying them, that is. That's all sorts of_weird_. I really would not want to make an egg. But I'm not in heat, so we don't need to consider that."

"That's good." Nerlin moved his paw to point to one specific part of Pyxis's anatomy--a fold of skin near the top of her genital slit, right where the extra small scales surrounding her slit ended. "Is that your...?"

"Clitoris. That's just... It doesn't do anything, though it feels very nice to rub there. But gently! I like to do... like this..." As Nerlin watched curiously, Pyxis placed her paw over her clitoris and slowly moved the flesh around in small repeated circles. "Hmm. Feels nice. I can make myself orgasm just from that. So since you've asked, this is how I normally touch myself. Just like this."

"Don't you..." Nerlin gestured lower, towards Pyxis's vagina. "You ever put anything inside there?"

Pyxis didn't stop touching herself even as she responded. "Ehhhhh...yes! Yes, I have. Heat makes you do all sorts of silly things, you know? Or I guess you wouldn't know. But take it from me--being horny makes you really creative."

"Really? So what sort of things have you tried putting in yourself?" Nerlin prompted.

Pyxis shrugged her shoulders. "Just normal stuff. I do own a vibrator--sometimes I use that if I feel like getting some extra stimulation, but mostly I don't bother. It's troublesome to have to clean it; easier to just use my paws."

"Now that is interesting!" Nerlin stored this titbit away inside his memory, for use in future fantasizing. "Anything else?"

"Normal stuff. Uh... I've tried a carrot once. Absolutely not worth the effort, and afterwards I had to find a way to throw it away without anyone noticing it in the trash, to make sure that it didn't accidentally get cooked and put into dinner. I've also tried a candle, because it was stick shaped. Also not satisfying at all." Pyxis said this all in a matter-of-fact voice. However, when she glanced up and met Nerlin's intrigued gaze, she blushed and looked away. "Don't...don't tell anyone about that!"

Nerlin grinned. For how shy and quiet Pyxis usually was, it was fascinating to think of her exploring herself and experimenting sexually. "Of course. My snout is sealed and your secrets are safe with me. Anything else?"

Pyxis shook her head. "No, no. You have to tell me something first, so that we both have embarrassing sexual secrets about each other. That way we both have to keep the other's secrets. How about: uh, have you ever thought about me when you were touching yourself?"

"That's an easy question. Yes, I have. Many times," Nerlin replied. "What about you? You ever fantasize about me?"

Pyxis nodded. "Yes. I would just... Most times it doesn't make sense, just some sort of sexual thing without context. Other times I would dream about how things might go if I ever worked up the courage to talk to you and try to set up a date. See if you might like me back."

"Sort of like what actually ended up happening?"

"Sort of." Pyxis used her wing to gesture all around to the lighthouse around them. Night had fallen, but the rain was still showering down. She raised her head and spat out a short blast of frostbreath, creating a small cloud of condensation. "But the real adventure ended up being much better than anything I'd imagined! You and I together--this is all so fun and exciting. And also sexy! I wasn't expecting that, it's a pleasant surprise. Wait, I was supposed to be asking you about your dirty private sexual secrets, wasn't I? How about..."

Pyxis pointed towards Nerlin's underbelly, where his erect penis was still jutting out of his genital slit. Deprivation from tactile stimulation over the last few minutes meant it wasn't exactly as erect as before, but it was still all the way out of his genital slit. "Have you ever tried sticking that into anything?" Pyxis asked.

"Sure I have. I've tried stacking two pillows up and humping them," Nerlin admitted. He made a couple of thrusts of his hips to demonstrate, and Pyxis's neck frill twitched. "But that wasn't very comfortable, and I ended up making such a huge mess of my bed that I only ever did it once."

"I wish I could see that," Pyxis muttered.

"No, you wouldn't. It was such a mess, and semen stains aren't easy to wash out of linen. The easiest way is to do it in the tub, so that it all just washes down the drain after I'm done. My bathtub at home has these water jets, and those feel really nice too." Nerlin paused for a moment, wondering just how much he wanted to share. "Since we've both agreed to share our embarrassing secrets--I've also tried using my mouth."

"Your mouth? How would..." Pyxis frowned, then her neck frill snapped all the way up and her eyes went wide. "Okay. That I really want to see."

"Seriously? If I show you, you have to show me how you use your tail," Nerlin counterproposed.

"Deal!" Pyxis agreed with no hesitation at all, to Nerlin's slight surprise. "Using my tail is pretty easy. I just need to do like this..." Still lying on her back, Pyxis curled her tail around so that she could line up the tip with her genital slit. Then without any pomp, she simply slid it in, pushing the appendage a short distance into herself. "And there it is. Done!"

"Just like that?" Nerlin asked.

Pyxis shrugged. "What did you expect? I can sort of move it in and out for extra stimulation, but mostly I think I just enjoy the feeling of being filled." She slid her tail in and out a few times.

"Can I try?" Nerlin reached out his paw and after Pyxis nodded her approval, he held her tail and gently made a few thrusting motions with her appendage. It was awkward, silly, and also the sexiest thing he had ever seen or done. "Hahaha, this is great! So you do this, and then you touch here?"

Pyxis took Nerlin's other paw and gently guided it to her genital slit, which her tail was still penetrating. "Touch right here. That spot. Don't slide your paw. Just sort of, uh, move the skin around and...yes. That's it. Feels good."

Nerlin grinned excitedly, and he did exactly as asked. Simple repetitive motions were all it took. His right paw was holding Pyxis's tail and thrusting it in and out of her genital slit, while his left paw gently rubbed her clitoris. She felt warm under his touch, as if heat was radiating from her body, especially her genital slit. "I wish I had the words to describe just how sexy you look right now," he muttered.

Pyxis's response was a quiet moan, and her whole body shuddered. "Ooohh..." Nerlin kept going, watching Pyxis's body language to figure out what she wanted. At first he was slow and cautious, then gradually he begun speeding up his motions, which got another moan of pleasure out of her. He tried pushing her tail deeper, but Pyxis tensed up and Nerlin could feel her tail muscles flexing as she deliberately resisted the move. "Not too deep," she murmured quietly, putting one of her paws on his shoulder.

"Noted, sorry," Nerlin said. Then he kept going, patiently working to pleasure Pyxis with his paws. He didn't need to say anything else, for the moment spoke for itself. This was his first sexual experience with any other person, and he wanted to memorize every single detail. Quietly he observed Pyxis--at first she was tense, self-conscious, and watching him closely, but gradually she seemed to relax. Her steady breathing became quiet moans, and her gaze grew distant and unfocused.

Not too fast, not too rough, not too deep--Nerlin found a good rhythm and stuck to it. And after a while, his patience was rewarded. Sometime over the past few minutes, Pyxis had closed her eyes, but now he heard her mutter something. "That's...oh...Nerlin that's really...ahhh... Keep going. Just like that."

Pyxis's paw was still on Nerlin's shoulder, and her grip tightened until he felt the sharp pain of her claws scratching him, but that didn't deter him. Nerlin kept his paws moving, and he watched with rapt attention as Pyxis hit an orgasmic peak.



With eyes still shut, Pyxis gasped and her snout scrunched up. "Oh... Ah... Nerlin... Ahhhh...!" Her whole body trembled and jerked, shuddering under Nerlin's touch as bursts of pleasure surged through her.

"Ah... Ahhhaha..." Pyxis moaned. Instinctively she bucked her hips--first away from, then towards that overwhelming stimulation. Inside her genital slit, her vaginal muscles clenched in a rhythmic motion, beating to a tempo dictated by autonomous reflex and not conscious thought. Her muscles squeezed down on her own tail, which had gone fully stiff from the intensity of her pleasure.

In that moment, the entire world imploded and vanished. Nothing mattered except for two simple things--that deep fulfilling pleasure which had seized control of her body, and the handsome, magnificent red-scaled drake who was giving it to her. Somehow it felt better than touching herself ever had. Pyxis twitched and jerked, shuddering over and over.

It felt so good the way Nerlin was touching her. He kept going, gently rubbing her clitoris and thrusting her tail in and out throughout the course of her orgasm, until Pyxis finally relaxed and murmured for him to stop. "Ok... ok...hahh... enough... enough..."

Pyxis slumped back, gasping for breath as a blanket of blissful satisfaction settled over her body. Her paw dropped from Nerlin's shoulder, and her tail slid out of her own slit. Self-awareness slowly returned, and yet not any embarrassment. She had wanted this to happen, and it had happened. In fact, she wanted it to happen again, but perhaps that could wait until later. Blinking her eyes open, Pyxis stared at Nerlin, trying to find the words she wanted to say. "Wow. That was... wow. Best thing I've ever felt. Thank you...? Thank you."

Nerlin grinned. "Really? Not bad for my first try, then!" He adjusted his position, which was when Pyxis realized what she had done. She placed her paw back on Nerlin's shoulder, and it came away bloody.

"Is that...? Oh no. No, no, no. Did I do that?" Lost in pleasure during her orgasm, she'd let her claws extend out of her paws and scratched up Nerlin's shoulder. Now there were small puncture marks lightly dripping blood, where her claws had cut between his scales and dug into his skin. "I scratched you up? I...I am so, so very sorry. Oh, no..."

"Did you really?" Nerlin glanced down, and he looked amused. He used his own paw and dabbed the wounds, staring at his own blood. "Haha, wow, you actually did!"

"You shouldn't laugh! You're injured." Pyxis hurriedly rolled to her feet and trotted over to their flight harnesses. Looking through her harness pouches, she plucked out her healing crystal and tried to offer it to her partner. "Here."

Nerlin was still grinning and he shook his head. "No need to use a healing crystal, it's just a small scratch. Do you think this'll leave a scar?"

"I hope not!"

"Why not?" Lowering his head, Nerlin began licking at the scratch marks to clean them. "Not a big scar, of course, but a small scar would be alright. Something that's not too noticeable, just enough to be a reminder of our first time together. Wouldn't that be funny?"

Pyxis suspected her blue scales were blushing to purple. "I... Sorry about that."

"It's nothing. You didn't do it on purpose, and it's just a small scratch." Nerlin flopped back down onto the sleeping bags, lying on his side. "Hehe. I was actually thinking of asking you to rub me at the same time as I was touching you--good thing I didn't! Hahah..."

Now Pyxis was quite sure her scales were flushing with blood, turning her partially purple instead of her natural blue colour. "Sorry! I'll make it up to you." She sat down on the sleeping bags right next to Nerlin, and then she peeled away the metallic foil covering her healing crystal. Pressing the healing crystal against Nerlin's shoulder triggered its power, and shimmering sparks of energy leapt out from the crystal lattices to sink into his scales. Within seconds, the magic started to take effect. The scratch marks stopped bleeding and sealed up, leaving just faint patches of discoloration where injury had once been.

"There we go." Pyxis kept the crystal pressed up against Nerlin scales for a few more seconds to make sure any deeper trauma was healed, then she wrapped the crystal back in its foil coating and returned it to her harness. Some of the healing magic had been drained, but the crystal still would hold most of its remaining energy. "Good as new." She patted his shoulder.

Nerlin rubbed his shoulder, feeling the newly repaired skin and scales. "Thanks. Although when you said you'd make it up to me, I was kind of hoping you meant it another way..."

Pyxis leaned in so her snout was almost touching Nerlin's, and she slid her paw down his chest, reaching for his erection. "You'd like that, wouldn't you? Don't worry. We'll get to that, and this time I'll finish you off properly. I fully intend to... Uh... Where is that thing?"

Pyxis groped blindly for a moment, then she glanced down so she could grab Nerlin's penis properly. "Alright, got it! On to business." His penis had gone half-retracted into his genital slit, but Pyxis's touch quickly brought it back to full tumescence. "I'm going to... Wait a second--what about your part of the deal?"

"What?"

Pyxis released Nerlin's erection, and instead she tapped him on the nose. "I showed you how I used my tail, so you're going to show me how you use your mouth. Remember? That was our deal."

"Oh. I suppose I did agree," Nerlin conceded.

"You're not backing out of our deal, are you?" Pyxis asked.

"No, no. A deal is a deal..."

"Right! Go on, then. I want to see." Pyxis sat back on her haunches to watch, and her neck frill was perked all the way up from curiosity.

"Alright, I did agree." Nerlin hesitantly tapped his paws against the ground, then he rolled onto his belly and stood up on all fours. Bending his neck down, he lowered his muzzle and aligned it with his erect penis. "So here goes." Then he simply opened his jaws and took his erection into his muzzle. Slowly he slid lower, taking up more of his length until the end of his muzzle had almost touched his genital slit.

"Huh! It just fits in there all nicely," Pyxis said. She moved her tongue around in her mouth, imagining what Nerlin must have been feeling. "What does it taste like?"

Bent over with his erection still in his own mouth, Nerlin paused and glanced up at Pyxis. With his mouth full, his voice was muffled, but he did raise an eye ridge. "Mm? What?"

"Actually, don't answer that yet. Maybe I'll just find out for myself," Pyxis muttered, in what she hoped was a sensual, alluring voice. "Later, though, and I make no promises."

"Hmf. Hehe." Nerlin made a grunting noise which sounded like a muffled chuckle. Then he went into motion--rocking his hips forwards and back, slowly thrusting his penis into his own maw. Every time it went in and out, it made sloppy, slick sounds of wet flesh sliding against flesh. Nerlin's knot, though still uninflated, was slightly larger in diameter than the rest of his shaft--there were especially loud "glrp" sounds as that particular part went in and out of his mouth.

Pyxis felt her neck frill perk up as she curiously watched Nerlin pleasure himself. The sight of him humping and moving his hips sent an enticing tingle running through her own underbelly--what would it be like for him to thrust his penis not into his own mouth, but into her?

After a few more moments, Nerlin stopped and pulled his muzzle off his erect length. A strand of saliva briefly connected his snout and his erection, until he licked his mouth clean. "Alright, so that's... that's how I do it. But not very often. It strains my neck if I go too long and it's easier to just use my paws."

For a moment, Pyxis was torn between three possibilities. She wanted to see Nerlin finish in his own mouth, but she also wanted to touch him and pleasure him much as he had down to her just a few minutes ago. And of course, she was curious about an actual mating--a deep, primal part of her mind wanted to know about what it would feel like to have Nerlin mount her and thrust until he loosed his seed into her ready, waiting depths.

"I...really want to mate with you right now," Pyxis admitted. She walked up to Nerlin and placed her paw on his shoulder. Gently she pushed him down, rolling him onto his back again.

Nerlin looked wide-eyed, but he eagerly complied. "Are we...? Are we going to...mate?"

"I don't know." With Nerlin lying on his back, Pyxis glanced down at her partner's erect length. Sniffing at his penis, she could smell his saliva coating his length, but also there was a distinct masculine odour. His penis seemed so large! Not absurdly large or even disproportionately large, but comparing it to anything else she'd tried putting inside her genital slit, it was simply intimidating.

Or was that just her anxiety speaking? She'd fantasized about mating with Nerlin so many times before, yet now that the possibility was here, uncertainty was holding her back. "I want to, but I just... Sex? Between us? That's so...I don't know. This is all so adult! Oh, but I'm not sure if I'm ready for this. I'm curious and I want to try it, but what if I do something wrong and I mess things up? And that thing...your thing_...will it even _fit? But I want to try anyway."

Pyxis shook her head, and nervously she curled her tail around her paws. The words tumbled out like a waterfall. "What are these feelings? I don't know how to cope with them. I feel this lust and it's crazy! I just want to mate with you like we're just a bunch of animals following instincts, trying to spread our genes. But then again I look at you and whenever you smile it makes me smile too, and I just want to be with you doing normal things? Is that love? What is love even? I'm just going to die of nervousness. Don't judge me!"

Nerlin looked amused, yet genuinely endeared, and also still aroused. "Um, Pyx," he said, before Pyxis cut him off.

"Shhh! Don't say anything or I'll get all embarrassed again! You're judging me. I know you're judging me! Well, guess what? I don't care!" Pyxis reached out her paw and grabbed Nerlin's penis. It felt warm and rigidly squishy under her touch. "I am going to see how this thing works, and then maybe we'll do the actual mating after that. Or maybe tomorrow. Or maybe never. I don't know. I'm rambling again. Shut up!"

They were both quiet for a moment, then Nerlin nodded. "You are...so cute when you get all awkward."

Pyxis took a deep breath to steady herself. Glancing around, she took in the surroundings--outside the lighthouse there was rain and darkness, but inside there was just the two of them. It was quiet and intimate, and although it wasn't quite warm, it wasn't too cold as to be uncomfortable. No turning back now.

"You don't have to feel pressured. There's no obligation for you to do anything you don't want to--" Nerlin had been saying.

"I know..." Pyxis interjected, "...but I kind of want to." She took a quick moment to smear Nerlin's slick pre-ejaculate over his length again, just so her strokes would be properly lubricated, and then she got started.

Nerlin inhaled sharply and let it out in a moan. "Oohhh, that's nice. That feels so nice."

"Glad to hear it." Pyxis smoothly picked up the rhythm--up and down, up and down, and then maybe a slight twist of her paw for variety. After about a minute of those simple strokes, she reached her other paw down to start squeezing and rubbing Nerlin's knot as well.

Having gone through an orgasm just a short while ago, Pyxis's arousal had dipped slightly, but not completely. Touching and handling Nerlin's virile, erect length made her feel aroused too--a side effect of empathy, or sexuality, or whatever it was. This was them growing up.

Mating could wait. For now, using her paws would suffice. Out of a sense of lewd curiosity, Pyxis simply wanted to see Nerlin's ejaculation before she felt it. She had read encyclopaedias talking about the reproductive processes of a drake, and she had snuck looks into a glamour magazine that someone had once left in a classroom, and of course she had fantasized and wondered, but now she was going to see it for real.

Nerlin was making all sorts of pleasured sounds, and his tongue was lolling out the side of his snout. Pyxis smiled. Previously she'd already gotten Nerlin worked up into an almost orgasm, and his pent-up arousal was clearly still waiting to be released. "Soon?"

Though his eyes were still half-open, Nerlin's gaze was unfocused and distracted. "Soon. Ah... I don't even know. Everything just feels amazing. Your paws feel great. Remember to squeeze the knot when it gets all big..."

"I can do that," Pyxis said. "Should I--what about my other paw? Do I keep rubbing you throughout?"

"Just keep going until I tell you to stop... Oh, oh, wow..."

Pyxis adjusted her position so she was closer to Nerlin's lower half. She wanted to be able to see both his face and his groin at the same time--in an ideal position to watch when he finished. It really couldn't be long now. Nerlin's penis felt stiff and rigid in her paws, and his whole body was tensing up. Perhaps a few more strokes, or just a firmer squeeze to his knot, and then that did it.



Nerlin was lost in a sea of pleasure. Pyxis's paws felt divine, and his hips jerked and bucked as she rubbed up and down. She was going to make him release--there was no doubt over that, the only question was how long it would take. It was definitely different from when he'd touched himself--now he had surrendered control over his pleasure, and Pyxis's strokes felt relentless but gentle, pushing him towards a climactic finish at a pace he could not decide. Normally Nerlin could adjust his grip or change up his speed as he approached orgasm, but Pyxis was in charge now. Then suddenly she squeezed down harder on his knot, and Nerlin felt his pleasure tumble over that final threshold for pleasure. He opened his mouth to warn her, but all that came out was a gasp. "Ahh...!"

The sheer intensity of the moment caught him by surprise. Swept up in a slow wave of building pleasure, Nerlin felt muscles in his underbelly start to clamp down in a familiar but undeniable sequence. His knot throbbed and began to inflate with blood, but this time Pyxis's grip held constant. She squeezed down on his knot, and that sensation triggered the next step in an automatic reflex cascade. Warm, tingly, pressure began to pool deep inside Nerlin's body, somewhere in his genital slit, and an unstoppable sense of inevitability paralyzed his mind. "Pyx... Pyxis...! It's coming... Wow your paws are just...! Keep going, keep going..." he moaned, not even able to form a complete sentence.

Pyxis's left paw was still squeezing down on Nerlin's knot, and her right paw continued its smooth stroking up and down the rest of his length. Each kneading stroke sent tiny surges of pleasure that kept adding up into an incredible wave, as glands and vesicles prepared for what was coming next. For a few long seconds Nerlin endured through that paralyzing pleasure as his body prepared to ejaculate, but it was too much to hold in. Warmth slowly climbed up the length of his erection, until a small dribble of semen actually began to leak out of his tip and over Pyxis's paws.

"Oh," Pyxis murmured, then right at that moment Nerlin felt the full force of his orgasm erupt out of him.

"Grrnahh!" Raw, blindingly intense pleasure entirely overwhelmed the young male dragon, and he let out a growling roar without thinking about it. His hips frantically bucked upwards and his groin muscles clenched hard, sending long, messy jets of semen shooting out from the tip of his penis to splatter against his chest. There was no thinking about it or anything at all, as the absolute pleasure washed away all possible thought. Repeated waves of warm bliss exploded through his body, originating from deep inside his underbelly and surging out through his length.

Nerlin shuddered and jerked as the pulses of pleasure kept going. His eyes were tightly closed and the whole world vanished except for that mind-numbing pleasure. He couldn't stop it, he couldn't slow it--all he could do was endure the euphoria as his body repeatedly fired out his semen in rapid pulses. It was astonishingly rewarding, and he wasn't in control of it at all.

Time meant nothing at all, but eventually the pleasure waned and his thought processes slowly returned. Nerlin blinked open his eyes and took in the scene. His chest, belly, neck, and even his chin had been splattered with semen, forming streaks of viscous, whitish-clear liquid. Pyxis was still holding his knot with one paw, and her other paw was clutching his erection and stroking it up and down--Nerlin hips bucked at the overly sensitive sensation, and he gestured for her to halt.

Pyxis's neck frill was all the way up, and her eyes were wide. She was the first one to speak. "Oh. Oh wow! That was crazy."

Nerlin could feel his hearts still rapidly beating, and he was panting softly. "Uh..."

"You should have seen yourself. That was quite the sight! You were just flailing all around, and all this just... shot out again and again, and it just kept going! At first your semen leaked out and I thought there would only be a little bit, but then... boom. Everything else." Pyxis slid her paw up Nerlin's erection and squeezed out a few more drops of semen from the tip. "You really let yourself go. Just wow. What a mess. Hnng, that was hot."

Nerlin was finally starting to regain his wits. "I think... you could probably tell, but that felt very good."

Pyxis smiled. "You're welcome. This was so fun! We should definitely do this more." She gestured over his body, which was now covered by his own semen. "You made a...gooey mess all over yourself! Haha, look what you've done. Look what we've done."

Nerlin nodded. "I'm a mess."

"How are we going to clean this up?" Pyxis leaned down towards Nerlin's abdomen and for a second he wondered if she was going to try licking some of his semen, but then she just sniffed at it and looked up at him.

"I...I have a small towel in my flight harness." Nerlin started to rolled himself over, but Pyxis stopped him.

"Don't get your mess all over the sleeping bags! I'll get your towel for you." Pyxis pulled over Nerlin's flight harness from the side of the room. "Uh, which pouch?"

"Left dorsal."

Pyxis popped open the pouch and plucked out Nerlin's towel. Nerlin took the towel from her and started wiping down his chest and underbelly. Pyxis watched him curiously throughout the process and she pointed towards his now mostly-flaccid penis, which was halfway through retracting back into his genital slit. "So how long does it take before that is ready to go again?"

Nerlin continued wiping himself clean. "Are you that eager to go again?"

Pyxis flicked her neck frill up and down. "Um, no? Or yes? I'm curious. Since you just...shot out all your seed, I assume you need some time before you could do it again. Not that...not that we need to do it again, although we might. We should! Or maybe some other time. It was fun. But just hypothetically, if we wanted to do more sex stuff like actually mating properly, how long would it take before you'd be ready to go again?"

"I think the shortest time I've gone between two orgasms was ten minutes?" Nerlin guessed.

Pyxis looked surprised, and a little impressed. "That fast? After all that...semen you produced, I'd have thought it would take longer for you to, uh, replenish it all."

Nerlin snorted with amusement. "That's sort of correct? Normally after I finish, it feels like all of my arousal is completely gone and I don't want to keep going. One time I was curious about that, so I tried to keep touching myself even after I'd finished, and after about ten minutes it happened again. It still felt really good, but there was way less semen than before when I finished a second time. I don't know how long it actually takes to fully replenish everything. A few hours? A day? I've never tested it."

"Cool stuff," Pyxis decided. "So if, hypothetically, we were going to try mating, that means we should do it tomorrow."

Having mostly finished wiping himself clean, Nerlin returned his dirty towel to his flight harness pouch. "Hypothetically?"

"I don't know, I was just thinking we could save some fun stuff for tomorrow. Don't judge me." Pyxis yawned widely, and she flopped down on her sleeping bag. "I'm feeling all satisfied and happy... and sleepy." She went completely limp and closed her eyes. "What a nice end to our day. My wings muscles feel so used..."

Nerlin nodded sympathetically. "Today we didn't fly till as late in the afternoon as yesterday, but flying through that storm was tough. It's probably wise for us to get some rest. We still have a lot of flying to go." He sat down on his own sleeping bag, and then he took the lantern and turned it down until it was barely casting any illumination. The lighthouse was dark all around them, and the rain was still droning down on the outside walls.

For a moment they sat quietly in the darkness, each on their own sleeping bag right next to each other. Then Nerlin felt Pyxis slide over and snuggle up against his side. "Hmmmr, that's better," she said, with a rumbling purr. "I'm so _comfortable_right here...hhrrrggg..."

"Agreed." Nerlin too was enjoying that warm, happy feeling of Pyxis pressed up against his side. The only thing which could have made the moment better was if they were kissing--and after a few seconds, he realized this was entirely a reasonable and achievable goal. It was dark enough that he could only barely make out the outline of Pyxis's body, but he reached out a paw and found her neck, which he then used to find her head, and then he could kiss her.

It was a quick, casual gesture, not as intense as it could have been, but still intimate and satisfying. When Nerlin finally pulled back, Pyxis let out a long, pleased sigh. "Life...has never felt so good. If this is love, it is great."

Even in the darkness, Nerlin couldn't help but smile. He extended his wing and wrapped it around Pyxis's back, like a blanket. "I'm glad that you're here with me, Pyx. Sleep well."



END

The next chapter will come in a few days. There will be two more chapters total (or possibly three, depending on how I edit it).