"Seriously, though, Leo," Avani said breathlessly as we lay on the grass in the warm sun some time later, "Where do you get all that energy? It seems like we'll have barely caught our breath before you're ready to go again!"

"Well, I do have several centuries of catching up to do," I replied, kissing her hair.

"That reminds me," she said, twisting around so that she could rest her head on my stomach and still look into my face. "How old are you, anyway?"

"Several centuries; I thought we'd just established that," I said, teasingly.

She poked me in my cheek, saying, "You know what I mean! I mean, how old were you when you were sealed?"

"Does it matter?" I asked her, amused by her curiosity.

"No... of course it doesn't matter," she replied slowly. "I'm just curious, that's all. You seem older than the other young single guys in town, but at the same time, you're more playful than them, too. I just can't guess."

I just closed my eyes and smiled, still not answering her question. After a minute, she wriggled restlessly against me, saying, "Leo? Are you going to tell me?"

I rolled away from under her and onto my stomach to let my tail finish drying. Instead of answering her, I simply commented, "The hot sun feels good, doesn't it?"

"Leeooo!" she exclaimed, mildly vexed.

"Maybe if you tell me how old you are, I'll tell you how old I am," I murmured.

"That's not fair!" she pouted. "You know I have no idea what my age is. Even my birthday is just a date Venti picked at random. Jones thought I was probably in my very early twenties when I arrived, and that's all I know."

She climbed onto my back and began to tickle my ears and neck. "H-hey! S-stop that!" I gasped, laughing as I tried to reach up behind me to grab her arms.

"Not until you 'fess up!" she exclaimed, tickling even harder. I flipped over onto my back beneath her, grabbing her waist to keep her away from my ears. That called to mind being in a similar position this morning as we made love in the early morning light, and I found myself becoming aroused again.

Avani eyes widened as she felt me poking against her, and she exclaimed, "Leo! Again? Already?!"

"Like I said, My Lady—you're addictive," I replied as I pulled her down to me and kissed her.

************

As I lay sprawled across her afterwards, our bodies still entwined and damp with sweat, I nuzzled and kissed her neck. "Twenty-eight," I whispered into her ear, then kissed her again.

She put her arms around my neck and kissed me back, then said, "Why didn't you want to tell me?"

"To tease you of course," I replied.

"Leo!"

"...or maybe not," I continued with a grin as I slid off and stretched out beside her. "Maybe because I'm older than most of the single guys in town. Maybe I was afraid you'd think I was too old for you."

"Oh, Leo, I don't care how old you are. Well, I mean, too young wouldn't be good, but no way could you be too old."

"Or maybe I'm teasing you even now, and I have been teasing you all along. The world may never know!"

"Ugh! Leo!" she said, giving me a push. "Anyway, thanks. And twenty-eight is hardly ancient—you aren't that much older than most of the others. Kiel's seventeen...."

"What? Really? Seventeen, huh? I thought he was fifteen at most. Interesting," I interrupted in surprise.

"Yep, he'll be eighteen on his next birthday, which is early Winter," she continued. "Doug just turned nineteen, Vishnal will be twenty in Winter, and Arthur and Dylas are both twenty-three now. Dylas was sealed practically as soon as he turned twenty-one, which I guess was the age of majority at that time. Or at least that's what Venti told me."

"She would likely know," I agreed.

************

The shadows were lengthening and we were getting hungry, so we dressed and gathered up our things and our buckets of fish. Avani cast Escape and we returned to her room, where one of the butlers had built up a nice, roaring fire to welcome us home. I told her that she could have all the fish I'd caught if, in return, she'd prepare all the lamp squid and rainbow trout for me. She laughingly agreed and placed our catch in her refrigerator.

After dinner, we spent the evening quietly, sitting together in front of the fire. I read, and Avani brought out a small harp, saying she needed to practice. She'd recently begun taking lessons from Meg, and from the sound of it, she was a quick learner—her performance was quite pleasant, if unpolished. After she set it aside, she picked up her history book and read for a while before we prepared for bed. She gently brushed my tail out for me, which I found far more relaxing this time. Once in bed, I kissed her good night before she blew out the lamp, leaving the room bathed in the flickering amber glow of the waning fire.

I was just drifting off to sleep a few minutes later when I heard her whispering my name. "Hmmm?" I responded drowsily.

"I'm sorry if I'm disturbing you, but... could you... could you just hold me, please?" she said, sounding slightly anxious.

"Anytime you wish, My Lady, and for as long as you wish," I replied, wrapping my arms around her and pulling her close to me. She rested her head against my chest with a sigh, and I asked, "Is anything wrong, My Lady?"

She hesitated for a moment, then said, "I... I just suddenly felt incredibly sad and alone. I guess it was talking about everyone's ages and how even my birthday isn't really my birthday. It just hit me all over again, about not knowing my past, I mean. I think that's why I like to read history books so much—because I have no history of my own, at least, not from before I came here. I've been trying hard not to worry about it... but sometimes it just hits me again."

I gave her a squeeze and said, "I understand. In a way, we have similar problems. We've both lost our past—you to amnesia, and me to the passage of centuries. And I'm not even sure which is worse... knowing what you've lost, or having no idea at all. But neither one is much fun, is it? Still, keep your chin up, My Lady. Even if most of the townsfolk can't understand how you feel, I think I do, and I suspect the other Guardians would, too. So just remember—you're not alone."

She snuggled a little closer to me, whispering, "Thank you, Leo," and soon we were both asleep.

************

The following morning, after Avani returned from her chores, I asked her if I could borrow her study for the day, or if she'd rather, I could return to my room at the inn and use my own desk. "I really must spend the day working on this translation, My Lady, so I'm afraid I won't be able to take you anywhere fun today."

"I don't mind," she replied, "help yourself. And that's fine about today. To be honest, I need to spend some time thinking today, anyway. I need to figure out how I feel about Dylas now, and decide what I'm going to tell him if he shows up tomorrow. So I kind of wanted to get away from town, maybe do a little monster hunting, and just mull things over."

I frowned, saying, "That's fine, but it's not good to go out alone when you're distracted. You should take someone with you—either someone you're willing to discuss it with or someone who isn't talkative. Or take Baldur, if you'd rather not have other people around."

She nodded and said, "I thought I'd ask a couple of the girls to go with me, and then I can talk things over with them, too. I don't want to ask Forte—she's needed here in town right now. But I thought I'd ask Amber and Dolce. Amber won't be much help, but Dolce's really intuitive, maybe thanks to Pico's influence. And even if she isn't much of a fighter, Amber always cheers me up—she's just so happy all the time. Plus I think she feels badly that she wasn't able to warn me about Dylas and Lumie in time, and I want her to know I'm not upset with her."

I smiled fondly at her, and said, "In that case, My Lady, have a good day and return safely. Shall I order dinner from Porcoline's when you return?"

"That would be marvelous. Thanks, Leo—and good luck with your translation." She gave me a lingering kiss, then grabbed her gear and went in search of the two female Guardians.

************

I spent the day hard at work on my translation. It wasn't difficult, but it was time-consuming. The story itself intrigued me. Titled A Recipe for Happiness, it was a charming tale of a loving couple's life together. It was written in a form of the common language that even in my childhood had fallen into disuse, and only a few then could still read it easily—myself, for one, and Maria for another. Though it was undated, I assumed that it must predate me, since books written in my day had been written in the "new" style of the language—the style still currently in use.

I worked steadily, stopping only for lunch. Around noon, I walked the long way around to Porcoline's restaurant in order to stretch my legs a little and get some fresh air. Dylas was there, busily waiting on customers during the busy lunch hour.

After he took my order, he asked somewhat acerbically, "What, no Avani today?"

"Nope," I replied calmly, "I'm working and she's gone off monster hunting, with Dolce and Amber, I believe."

He snorted and walked away to seat some new customers. A short while later when he brought me my food, he said, "Hey, listen. Tomorrow's the fourth day. Would you tell Avani that I'll be there in the morning, if she's still willing to talk to me by then?"

I paused for a moment, looking at the anxious expression on his face, then nodded. "Yeah, I'll pass that along to her. And, hey, you might not believe me, but I wish you luck tomorrow. You were a real ass to her, but I'm sure you've worked that out for yourself by now. I hope at the very least we can all be friends again, but I really do hope the two of you can patch things up sooner or later—preferably sooner."

His eyes widened in surprise, and he mumbled, "Thanks, Leon. So do I," before hurrying off.

************

That afternoon, I continued with my work until I finally noticed that the room was growing dim and the candle was guttering. I extinguished the flame and set my work aside, then I went downstairs to build up the fire and wait for Avani to return. I was kneeling in front of the fireplace, carefully placing a few logs, when in a burst of light, Avani appeared in the room, along with Dolce and Amber—and of course Dolce's ghostly companion, Pico. She dropped her equipment on the floor and ran over to me, giving me a tight squeeze and a kiss, exclaiming, "I'm home!"

"So I see," I laughed, nodding to the others.

"Let me just fix the girls a snack—they're tired, hungry, and thirsty after a day out with me."

"I know the feeling," I replied with a smirk. She blushed and gave one of my ears a little scratch before darting off to the kitchen, the girls close behind her. A short while later, they emerged, and bidding us good night, Dolce and Amber left, Pico chasing after Dolce as they closed the door.

After locking the door behind them, Avani came over to where I was sitting on the sofa. "How'd it go?" I asked, setting my book aside and pulling her down onto my lap. To my surprise, she began to kiss me hungrily, pulling and tugging at my clothes and shedding her own. I hadn't yet seen her so aggressive, and although she caught me off guard, I was more than willing to accommodate her need. Her urgency resulted in a brief but very intense union, leaving us gasping and limp for some time afterwards.

When I could speak and move again, I stroked her hair and said with a smile, "Tough day at work, My Lady?"

She cringed and made a peculiar gurgling sound. Then she rolled off me, and leaning on one elbow, looked at me with a comical expression. "Oh, Leo. You have no idea what it's like to spend a day fighting monsters with Amber! I mean, I really do like her, but... oh, man!"

I laughed as she flopped over onto her back. "Do you know what her weapon of choice is?" she asked after a moment.

I thought, trying to imagine Amber using any weapon. "Staff?" I ventured as my best guess.

"Nope. She fights using a watering-can. A freaking watering-can! Oh gods, Leo. She should never be allowed outside the city walls alone. Ever. A blind wooly with two broken legs could kick her butt. She spent more time chasing butterflies and picking flowers than fighting. I felt like a babysitter. I'm so glad Dolce was there—she is the absolute Anti-Amber, and that's all that kept me sane, I'm sure."

I laughed again, then teased her, "So then... turn-ons include babysitting child-like innocents? Frustrating party members?"

She smiled at me, reaching her hand out to trace over my facial markings with a fingertip. "No. Turn-ons include seeing you after missing you all day. When I arrived here and saw you there by the fire, I wanted nothing more than to tear your clothes off right then and there. It was all I could think of, the whole time I was feeding Dolce and Amber. I could hardly wait for them to leave."

I grabbed her finger and kissed the sensitive tip softly, then said, "By the way, Dylas asked me to let you know he'd be over in the morning, if you'll see him. Have you made up your mind what you want to do?"

She flung her other arm over her eyes and sighed. "More or less. I don't know exactly what I'll say yet, but I think... I think I've sorted out how I feel."

"Well, I won't pry, but I want you to know that I'm hoping that you two reconcile—if not now, then soon."

She sat up and looked at me in surprise. "Really? Are you sure about that? If I take him back, you know that means you'll go back to sharing me again."

I sighed, saying, "Yes, I know that. And I know it won't be easy—if I could, I'd keep you all to myself."

She looked confused as she said, "Then... why...?"

"Because he can give you what I can't. Because I know that he cares deeply for you. And I know that, hurt and angry as you are now, deep down you care about him, too—or you wouldn't have bothered to even consider a second chance. And because I want us to be able to work as a team again—we're needed now, and we can't work together with things as they are."

"And what about his fling with Lumie? Do you think I should just overlook that?" she asked, curious rather than angry.

"Not at all. What he did to both of you was wrong. And I realize the hardest part will be learning to trust him again—and that he needs to earn that trust, not have it handed to him. No, I fully agree that he was a complete jackass and that you have every right to be angry and hurt by his actions. But at the same time—and I know this sounds strange—I believe he acted the way he did only because he cares so much for you."

She scowled thoughtfully, saying, "I don't follow your reasoning. Why would caring about me make him cheat on me? Shouldn't it be the opposite?"

"With most people, yes. But remember this is Dylas—he never really learned how to deal with people, or how to love and be loved. From all accounts, Venti was his only friend, ever, in his old life—and as wonderful as she is, she isn't human. You need to learn how to interact with humans from other humans, not from dragons. So when he misunderstood what had happened, I think he jumped to some wrong conclusion—that you didn't really care for him after all, or perhaps that you prefer my company to his. Then he dealt with that hurt in the only way he knew how, even if it was a stupid way: by seeking out another woman's company. He's dense and an idiot and has no social skills... but he cares about you more than he's ever cared about anyone in his entire life. And I think that scares the shit out of him."

She sighed as she snuggled up against me, resting her head on my chest. "Maybe so.... Anyway, I decided that I do still care about him. I'm not even really that angry anymore—mostly I'm concerned about his way of dealing with problems. If I take him back and something upsets him again one day, I don't want him doing this again. And it's not even really about the sex—I really wouldn't mind if he had other lovers. It was the way he refused to hear me out, and the sneaking around, and the way he used Illuminata that I found despicable about the whole affair. I don't want him to just shut me out and not listen when he's upset, like he did this time. So while I still love him, I don't know if I'll be able to trust him again. I'm willing to take him back, but only as a friend... for now. Then we'll see what happens, if he can regain my trust and if I can ever feel the same about him again."

I put my arms around her and held her tightly, saying, "Well then, at least I'll have you all to myself for a little while longer."

She stroked my chest and abdomen, lightly tracing imaginary lines across my skin. "Speaking of longer...." she said with a grin after a moment, her hand sliding lower under the sheet.

"Hmmm... and I think we can go a little more slowly this time around," I replied, smiling as I pulled her close and  kissed her.