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Jade and Amethyst (Chapter 5)

By

3669AD and BlazeLucivar

Alaric gave Giada a squeeze when she professed her feelings for him. "I enjoy your company, and you are appealing to the eye, and I do not wish to hurt your feelings. I have no mate as yet because I have not found a woman who has proven herself my equal." He looked deep into her eyes as he continued. "But you have come the closest in my nearly six hundred and fifty years." Giada chuckled, as if she knew he was going to say something similar. "Is that your way of saying you don't feel quite the same? It's all right, Alaric. I understand if that's how it is. To be honest, I wasn't expecting anything anyway." Alaric continued to hold the woman. He leaned his head down and kissed the top of her head before letting her go and turning away. She was a bit surprised by the kiss, even if it was only on the top of her head. "Is that my cue to leave for the day?" she asked. "I wouldn't want to stay and be rude if it is." "You may stay, if you so desire. I will not ask you to stay or leave on my behalf." He continued to watch the wall as if it were interesting, waiting to see what her reaction would be. Giada watched his back for a moment, then walked up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist. "I'll leave for now, but I'll be back when next I get the chance. It would be rude of me to do otherwise." She rose up on her toes and kissed his shoulder. "Thank you for simply conversing with me today, Alaric." Then she let him go and headed for the cave entrance. Alaric watched her leave his cave and smiled. He went to his servants' chamber and communed with them. When Giada returned the next day, she had a little parcel in her hands. One of Alaric's servants led her once more to the main chamber. "The master is not in presently, but as he has been out all day, I believe that he will be home soon. Would you like to wait for him?" Giada smiled and nodded. "Yes, I would."

She waited nearly an hour for Alaric to return to his home. His main servant informed him of Giada's arrival. He thanked the man and continued to his sleep chamber. His footsteps foretold his arrival to Giada, but he transformed to his human guise as he entered the room. Of course, seeing as Alaric was unclothed when he transformed to his human form, and after Giada's confession the day before, she blushed and glanced away, returning her gaze to his face as she held out the parcel in her hands. "Nashita wanted me to give this to you for her. She carved it herself." The little parcel held a rough-hewn rose made of bright red coral. It was nowhere near the craftsmanship Giada's works showed, but anyone who looked at it could tell there had been a lot of heart put into the rose. After opening the gift, he took in every single detail of it and smiled. "It is quite beautiful," he told her. "Please, allow me to put this in my treasure room. I shall return momentarily." He left the room to put the gift alongside the dragon Giada had made for him. Before he returned to his chamber, he decided to dress, because he had seen her action as he walked in. He felt that it would be bad manners to make his guest uncomfortable, especially after she had poured her heart into a glass and handed it to him. He had essentially slapped the proverbial glass away, and she was still willing to come back and visit him. He would need to handle the situation with care so as not to drive her away. When Alaric returned, Giada smiled. "I'll be sure to tell Nashita you thought her rose was beautiful. She'll be overjoyed to get a compliment like that from the one who saved her life." She still blushed slightly, but it wasn't from embarrassment anymore. "So, are we to train today, or would you like to converse as we did yesterday?" "It is never good to neglect your training for too long. Let's get to it." He assumed his accustomed stance as he prepared for her attack. Giada took a similar stance, mixing the stance Alaric had shown her with the stance she had taken during their first training session. Then she shifted her weight nearly imperceptibly and aimed a kick at his right shoulder. Alaric dodged to his left as though he were dancing, swaying his hips to help his movement. During his maneuver, he had dipped to make sure her leg went wide. He also struck out with his right arm to hit the right side of her stomach. Giada snapped her leg in and turned so Alaric's arm hit her shin rather than her side. She twisted her upper body toward the leg she had used to block his strike, the muscles in her core visibly stretching and contracting on either side, then unwound quickly so her supporting leg lifted off the ground behind her and came around with all her weight put behind the kick aimed at his head. He spun out of the way of her kick, side-pedaling quickly. There seemed to be something slightly vicious in that kick, he had never seen her attack his head before. He got ready in his stance once again and nodded to her to signal he was ready for her next attack. Almost before he'd readied himself for her next attack, Giada landed on the leg she'd kicked out and used her momentum to dive into a roll, landing behind Alaric and swiping out with her right leg in an attempt to knock his feet from under him. Alaric jumped high and back, landing on his hands and going into a handspring to land on his feet. As he was mid-air, he touched the back of her head and pushed her forward. There was a definite venom in her attacks today, and he considered momentarily while he gathered himself for the next attack. She got to her feet, jaw clenched in determination to actually land a hit. She aimed a left hook at his jaw, then feinted and switched arms, aiming a punch at his gut with her right. His thinking had made the dragon slow. He batted the left hook away, but he had nearly let her hit him in the abdomen. The master caught the pupil's hand and slipped his right leg between hers and swept her out from underneath herself. As he did that first day, he slipped his left hand between her back and the floor so he wouldn't hurt her. Giada gasped involuntarily. Once again, he was close enough for her to feel his heat, and she could feel heat rising in her cheeks. She quickly slipped from his grasp and got to her feet, sliding back into the mixed stance she'd taken at the beginning of their training session. He stood after she got out of his grasp, assuming his stance once more. "Shall we end our session for today?" "As I said, only if you wish to, Alaric. You are the master and I the student, after all." Alaric moved forward, much the same as he had during their first section. He made no move to attack her, but wrapped his arms around her waist. "I did not intentionally mean to hurt you, Giada. It is not that I do not share the same feelings as you, please do not get that impression." Giada looked away. "Then what did you mean by it?" she asked, pushing herself out of his embrace and wrapping her own arms tight across her chest. He looked down at the ground, hurt. Even with the opaqueness of his eyes, the hurt translated clearly across his face. "I merely meant that if we are to be mates, then we should take everything much slower." Giada's gaze shot back to his face. "You meant...? Oh gods did I misunderstand! I never meant--I mean, I didn't think--Gods, I need to shut my mouth before I shove my foot any farther down my throat..." He moved not one muscle as he watched her reaction. His arms at his sides, he took in every detail of her form as she made sense of what he was saying. Once again, Giada could feel heat rising in her face and she knew her cheeks must be bright pink. "You...you really think I could be a good mate for you?" "Do you not remember me telling you that you have come the closest to being a proper mate than any other in the last six hundred and fifty years?" Giada nodded, unable to look at him. "Yes, I do." "Did that mean nothing to you? Let's give it some time, and you continue to prove and improve yourself. With us amethyst dragons, our mates are not chosen based on feelings, but on actions. Those who are the most worthy get the opportunity to continue on their bloodlines." Something suddenly seemed to flare up in Giada's eyes. "If I must prove myself to you, then I will, Alaric. For the moment, though, I believe I must go and cool my head. Else I may show a much less worthy side of myself. Thank you for today's lesson." Alaric nodded and bowed to her. "Do not forget to thank your sister for the beautiful present." Giada bowed in return. "Of course. Until when next we meet, Alaric," she said, turning and heading out of the cave. She walked down the road to the beach and dove into the sea, for, after all, what better way was there to cool one's head than to immerse oneself in cold water? He smiled and convened with his servants until it was time to go to sleep.