Choices to Make [Three]

She was busier today than she had been for quite some time. Which was actually pretty unfortunate considering the fact that she didn't even want to be in the city today.

Not to mention she couldn't focus for all the tea in China, let alone make her mind work well enough to deal with multiple customers.

The elderly demon woman who had been looking over her collection for about twenty minutes finally picked up several pieces. She came back down the long table to stand before Lark, who smiled kindly at the little woman as she took the jewelry from her hands.

She was adding them up on her calculator and writing them into her pad when the woman spoke up. "Your skill with natural elements is astounding."

Grinning broadly, she responded. "It's in my blood."

Not bothering to explain that; as a dragon, she could sense the stones and metals in the earth and draw them out with her magic. Nor did she mention that her control of the fire element allowed her to do some interesting things with precious metals.

The woman paid with a smile on her face and took the small bag with her purchases in it. "Thank you." she said and Lark grinned at her, and thanked her for her purchases.

She had been the eleventh customer today, which was a new record for her.

Over the past year that she had been coming to the weekly fair to sell her jewelry, she had never had so many people be brave enough to buy from her. The majority of the people who purchased from her were demons and usually return customers... but everyone had been new today.

Even through her distracted mind, she did feel grateful and she smiled to herself as she looked over her sales tally. Realizing that she was going to have to restock her supply for next week. Her thoughts started to wander off again and she leaned back in her seat, peering blindly at her table.

It had been two weeks since she had been with Thunder.

Two weeks that she had spent wondering if she had made a mistake, wondering if she should have made it clear before hand that she had no intention of being his mate.

She hadn't intended to, but she had reacted quite coldly when he had shown affection afterwards... and he clearly hadn't been expecting that. She hadn't really explained it either.

Not that she wanted to, or even had the intention of doing so. Her history was not something that she had any desire to share, with anyone. She knew that he deserved some sort of warning though, so she had been trying to work out the words in her mind.... to no avail.

*Yes, what a nice conversation that will be. 'So, I know we had sex and that was great and we could definitely do that again. Just nothing serious.' Hell, I even sound like a slut in my head*

Her dragon was grumbling with annoyance in the back of her mind. She was aware that the dragon didn't care about any of the emotional, memory induced crap she'd been going through. She wanted the big powerful male to mount them again, and she didn't care about anything else.

Not that she could blame her other half.... She'd been having dreams about it ever since. Though she always woke up filled with regret.

Aside from his nonchalance when she'd told him that she wasn't looking for a mate, he had also seemed much too cavalier about her leaving. She had nuzzled him and stepped away, exchanged a quick goodbye and taken off. He had just set off towards his own den, without another word.

She rolled her eyes as she started to feel bad again.

She knew there was no point in being so maudlin about it. If he wanted to just have fun and she wanted that as well, then what did it matter?

"Spacing out again?" she blinked and cocked her head to peer at the fair organizer; Marin, as she smiled broadly at her.

Marin was a beautiful little demon female, with cute little white horns set on the temples of her head and shock white hair. Her crystal blue eyes seemed almost too big for her face, surrounded by snow white lashes. She belonged to a species of demon that had bred with elves; which accounted for her large pointed ears. She had the ability to lull people into a trance, and to heal minor emotional traumas.

"It is my favourite pass time, you know." Lark responded with an indulgent smile.

Marin simply smiled wider and Lark raised a brow, suspicious of the expectant and amused look on the woman's face.

"What is it? Do I owe you extra or something?" Marin just laughed at her teasing and pointed over Lark's shoulder.

Turning around in her seat, she stared silently for a moment at the massively tall male who was standing at the gateway to the park. His mismatched eyes were locked intently on her, and it took her a full minute to register that she was looking at the human form of Thunder. She felt her own eyes widen slightly, and a welcoming smile light her face as she lifted her hand and waved him over.

He glanced around at all of the people who were staring blatantly at him and slowly made his way through the crowd, clearly as uncomfortable among the other creatures as she was.

When he was finally in front of her, she grinned broadly at him and watched with fascination as his pupils dilated. "What a nice surprise" she murmured and he cocked his head, his eyes flickering over her face and down over her form with curiosity.

"I've been waiting to see you again." his voice was as thunderous in his human form as it had been as a dragon, and she shivered at the powerful quality of it.

She heard Marin gasp softly and glanced at the woman to see her staring lustfully up at Thunder. "You made these?" he drew her attention back to himself, and she glanced down as he picked up a silver ring which was set with a liquid blue agate.

She smiled softly, nodding "Yes, it's my hobby." she felt her dragoness shift anxiously in her thoughts, and a faint sense of anticipation welled up.

She hated to note that she was looking for his approval, because she wanted him to be impressed with her work. It almost made her blush with the foolishness of her feelings.

"You're talented." he rumbled and she smiled brightly up at him. Nodding slightly in acknowledgement even as her dragoness purred wantonly in the back of her mind.

"She has been working here for a year, her work is fantastic. That's why we allowed her to sell it here." Marin added, her voice slightly shaky, and filled with the lust that she clearly felt towards the gorgeous male form that Thunder presented.

Lark watched with curiosity as he tilted his head and looked down at Marin. She gasped softly, and Lark watched Thunder's eyes narrow dangerously.

"I came here to speak to Lark, not you nor anyone else. I believe if there is something that she wishes to tell me about herself, or her time here in the city, then it is for her to tell. Not you."

The dismissive tone he used made it obvious that he was use to his authority being upheld as law. She sighed softly to herself, watching the upset and embarrassed tears fill Marin's eyes.

She stood and moved around the table, catching the fragile little female against her side by her slight shoulders. "Ignore him. He's not good with people. Just go on and I'll deal with him, alright?"

Marin could only nod before she made a quick escape back to her own table where she sold her protective amulets and pouches. Lark sighed as she peered up at Thunder, shaking her head faintly.

"Though I appreciate the gesture of protection to my privacy, I do not appreciate you being rude to Marin. She was only being conversational and she clearly was attracted to you, and just trying to be friendly. Which makes it even more senseless to be so cruel to her."

He cocked his head, his eyes lighting with fascination. "She is your friend?" he pondered, glancing in the direction that Marin had gone.

"She has been kind to me. I do not really have friends, but she is a lovely person and she meant no harm. You owe her an apology."

To this, Thunder actually looked amusingly baffled. "Apology?" he said the word as though he had never heard it, and was not familiar with the concept. "For what? She had no right to hand out information to someone who may or may not know you."

Lark knew instinctively that dragons were protective of their lives, and did not take kindly to having anyone invade on that private aspect. By deed or by word. None the less, she knew that it was an instinct that was best left repressed, if one ever wanted anything to do with other people.

"Marin was only trying to have a casual conversation with you, she didn't mean it as something harmful to me." she tried to explain, knowing that it was a long shot.

He still looked as though he didn't grasp what she was saying, and she sighed once more. Catching his forearm and pulling him along after her as she headed over to Marin's table. The little female stared up at her with watery eyes as she tugged Thunder in front of the table beside herself.

"He's very sorry for being so rude to you. He is a friend of mind and he was unsure of your relationship to me.... He believed that he was doing the right thing by defending my right to privacy. It's a custom among our people." she tried her best to find words that would make sense to explain it, and was satisfied when Marin looked a little sheepish and smiled.

"Ah, I understand now. I'm sorry, I didn't realize that I was speaking out of turn." she smiled a little brighter as she glanced at Thunder, and Lark frowned at the statue beside her.

"It's fine. You know me well enough to know that I would have said something to you myself, if it had bothered me. Right?" to this Marin just nodded and smiled brightly at her, visibly relaxing. Despite the emotionless statue of Thunder who was just staring blankly down at her.

"Come on." Lark mumbled to him, heading back to her own table with a little wave of goodbye to Marin.

She sat back down behind her own wares. Thunder stood in front of the table for a moment, staring down at her with bemusement clear in his expression. "You took responsibility for my perceived slight to your acquaintance" he looked so confused, cocking his head slightly. "You are not responsible for me, nor my actions. I don't understand, why did you apologize for me?"

She honestly tried her best, but she could not stop her laughter. "Seriously?" she managed to ask, her eyes tearing up as she laughed at his old school concepts.

"I apologized because I knew that you had no intention of doing so, and she needed it. Marin is a pretty emotional little creature, and she doesn't deserve to feel bad about something that was not her fault." she shrugged, leaning back and flicking her gaze to watch a small group of females heading towards her table.

"That is why you told me to apologize." he assumed and she nodded faintly, glancing back up to find him staring at her still.

"It was simply a miscommunication, it's pretty common when you've got so many different species muddled into one area. You did not realize that she meant no harm, and she did not realize that you perceived a slight; based on our culture and instincts. Neither of you were in the wrong."

He continued to stare for a moment and then he gave her what could only be described as a dazzling smile, which made her heart skip ridiculously.

"I understand. You spend time with other people, so you think about how your actions and the actions of others effect them." she didn't get the chance to respond to this, because the group of females was already arriving at her table.

"Wow, you're so tall!" a very short brunette lamented, grinning attractively up at Thunder who glanced at her blandly.

His eyes met with Lark's and she smiled, noting that he was clearly endeavoring not to offend anyone else who she might be acquainted with. She laughed softly, addressing the other women who were all staring at Thunder.

"Yes, he's quite the mighty giant" the women simply laughed at this, never taking their eyes off of him.

She rolled her eyes, smiling up at him. Clearly these women had no intention of buying anything, and had only come over to flirt. He had yet to spare the females a second glance though.

She felt a faint sense of satisfaction at the concept of holding such a gorgeous and powerful males attention. It gave her dragon a thrill to know that she was the only female around who could match up to his power.

"How much longer are you staying to sell your jewelry?" he wondered and she hummed quietly, glancing at the women who were beginning to depart now since they clearly were not getting the attention that they had been seeking.

"I can go when ever, I've had a good day so it's no big deal. I'll have to restock before next week anyhow." she stood, grabbing her duffel and beginning to collect her merchandise. "Do you come to the city very often?" she pondered, knowing the answer already.

"No. I do not." his tone made it obvious that he was still very uncomfortable.

She nodded to herself, continuing to pack away her things.

"If you'd like, I could show you around?" she glanced up in time to see uncertainty cross his features, and she smiled brightly at him. "I know about all of the nice and quiet little places, where hardly anyone visits." she persuaded and watched interest flicker in his eyes.

"Quiet sounds good." he assured and she laughed softly.

Satisfied with herself for making an effort to be friends with him, she finished packing her things away. She went back to Marin's table to say a quick goodbye before they left, in the interest of reassuring her that everything was alright.

"You're leaving already?" she asked, glancing sheepishly at Thunder as though she was worried that her words would annoy him again.

Lark grinned at the little female, nodding. "Had a very good day and I need to get to work on new pieces. Think I'll have some fun and take a break for the day though."

Marin looked pleased to hear this and she returned the grin. "Good, that's good. You're a workaholic, you need the rest." she assured on a laugh and Lark laughed with her.

"Pot and kettle, Marin.... Perhaps you could snuff one end of your own candle every once an a while, aye?" she gave her a sly grin and Marin laughed once more.

"Perhaps. Now go, before you change your mind and go back to work." she waved her away then and Lark waved on her way out of the park.

Thunder was silent for about a block as they headed down the pavement.

She finally glanced up at him, raising a brow as she found him staring at her. "I didn't grow a second head, did I?" he chuckled heavily at this, shaking his head and she laughed softly. "You're just looking at me as though I had."

He hummed low in his throat, cocking his head "You're a fascinating type of female, that is all."

She grinned at him, laughing once more. "Of course, you're mesmerized. That makes perfect sense." she teased him, and his heavy chuckle made her heart skip.

"I guess I am. You are mesmerizing, after all."

She smiled indulgently at his words, rolling her eyes. "Sure. So... where do you want to go, aye Charming?"

He chuckled at this, shrugging one of his enormous shoulders. "Where ever you want to lead me."

Laughing, she nodded and headed around the next corner.

She wanted to take him to one of the few places that she felt at home in the city. In the hopes that he could relax, and that they could talk without being forced to censor their conversation.

Dragons never spoke about their kind to others, unless the person already knew about them. It was best to keep their existence a secret, even in a world full of demons.... They were still considered a myth, and if anyone knew that they were real.... Undoubtedly, it would lead to war and violence in the pursuit of the dragons power.

They walked silently until their shoes thunk-ed on the planks of the dock and she smiled, her nose tingling with the smell of the salt water breeze blowing off the ocean.

"The boardwalk." she explained as she caught sight of his expression of confused interest. "They have amazing treats here." she assured, heading down the empty walkway towards the shops that sat right on the ocean docks.

"It is quiet here." he mused.

She smiled. "Yes. The heat is too intense for most people at this time of day. The park has a lot of shade, but the ocean just magnifies the sun. The wind is also very humid, so it makes it harder for them. It's busier here at night." she explained, stopping in front of her favourite sweet shop.

"Do you like ice cream?" she pondered and he cocked his head, his eyes flickering away from her to inspect the shop.

"I haven't had it for a long time, I can't honestly recall if I do or not." he responded with a shrug and she laughed.

"Wait here then. Enjoy the view." she suggested, gesturing to the railing of the dock that looked down on the ocean before she headed inside the shop.

The owner; Vincent, was working and the old man smiled at her as she entered. Raising his hand in greeting. "It's been a while since I've seen your lovely face, nice to see you again." he assured and Lark grinned at him.

"Nice to see you as well. I've brought a friend this time, to try your delicious ice cream." she gestured out the big front window and Vincent glanced out and smiled with a little surprise.

"Finally found yourself a properly sized mate then?" he mused and she laughed, shaking her head.

"Not a mate, no. He's a good friend though." Vincent just nodded, giving her a knowing smile as he moved over to open the freezer which contained the ice cream.

"Which flavour will you have then?" he pondered, his eyes flickering back to the window. "Something very sweet, to share with the 'friend'?"

Lark laughed at his tone, shaking her head. "We'll each have a bowl.... I'll take coconut and he will have... chocolate." she answered and listened to Vincent chuckle even as he prepared their treat. "You'll note that the flavours don't match." she teased and he just grinned.

"Here you go my dear, two non-matching flavours for you and your highly compatible 'friend' out there." he sat the paper bowls on the high counter in front of her and she laughed softly, shaking her head once more as she took the bowls.

"Thank you, Vincent. My friend is going to love your ice cream, I just know it." she paid him and left with a wave even as the old man continued to chuckle after her, giving that same knowing look.

Thunder wasn't watching the ocean, he was just staring at her even as she left the shop and she held the bowl out to him. "Hope you like chocolate."

He peered down at the treat for a moment before he pulled the plastic spoon out, with a bite of the chocolatey ice cream on it and popped it in his mouth. She knew from experience that it would melt as soon as it hit the super heated air coming out of his lungs... but it was a cool sensation, and she enjoyed watching as his eyes flickered with interest.

"Not bad." he assured and she smiled brightly, taking a bite of her own ice cream and enjoying the explosive richness of the coconut.

She started away from the shop, heading down the boardwalk and glancing back to find him watching her silently. "I've got something else to show you, come on." she urged, smiling brightly and turning to head onward with him following behind. "This boardwalk has been here a long time, that's why the buildings look so old. The history here is pretty amazing.... This was primarily a pirate port back in the day, evidently." she laughed softly to herself as she relayed this to him and listened to his low hum of interest.

"I remember." he assured and she grinned broadly, spinning around to look at him.

"Really? You were here then?" she was thrilled to hear this and genuinely hoped that he had stories to tell her about it.

He just shrugged faintly, his eyes flickering past her to the place where she had been leading him. Clearly not having any intention of elaborating on this fact. "A history museum?" he mused and she smiled a little sheepishly.