Choices to Make [Three]

"Too boring?" she was happy to see him shake his head.

She smiled wider as she turned back and headed up the steps and into the old building, which housed an even older history. She munched on her ice cream for a moment, peering at the board which told of the various sections and what they contained. Humming softly to herself. "What should we see first?" she pondered and glanced up at him as he came to stand beside her.

"Naval and Pirate Ships." he read from the board and she grinned.

"You have great taste." she assured, grabbing his forearm with her free hand and leading him through the building. She was pleased that he had chosen her favourite exhibit and she laughed happily as she released him to open the door of the Ship Room.

She paused to watch him as he glanced around at the boats that filled the room. They were smaller models of the originals, but they were still large enough to tower over everyone who visited. "I'll show you the best one." she assured with a grin, catching his arm and tugging him excitedly through the displays until she reached her favourite one.

"It's 'The William'... or what they think it looked like. It belonged to Calico Jack and Anne Bonney." she grinned as she explained, staring up at the beautiful model. "Anne Bonney was one of my favourite pirate wenches.... She had a great story. Sad and crazy, but great."

He chuckled at this, leaning down slightly. "I've heard that Anne told Jack that 'If he'd fought like a man, that he needed not have been hanged like a dog.' the day that he came to visit her, before he was executed."

She grinned at the fact that he knew this. "She was a wicked wench." she assured and he grinned at her, showing off his very impressive teeth and a little indention in his left cheek that made her smile brightly. She reached up and poked her finger into it "You have a dimple." she mused.

He chuckled, catching her hand before she could drop it back to her side. He kissed the pulse point at the inside of her wrist. "You're much more inclined to touching in this form." he observed, his mismatched gaze boring into her until she felt like he might be looking at her soul.

"Such a beautiful creature." he rumbled and she shivered, pulling her hand away and walking to a different display.

He came to stand beside her again, and she kept her eyes on the ship she was now standing in front of, staring blindly at it as she spoke. "I told you before, I'm not looking for a mate." she explained, tilting her head slightly as she sighed "I'll never be looking for a mate. It has nothing to do with you." she tried to find the right words, so that he wouldn't think that she just didn't want him.

"You prefer to be alone, is that why?" he wondered, his tone neutral.

She sighed softly, shrugging. "I'm much better off, alone. I've been alone for.... For a long time. I'm not accustom to sharing my life with anyone."

He was silent for quite a few moments, but he still followed her as she moved through the displays. She was beginning to wonder if he was going to leave and never speak to her again, or if he even cared one way or the other. She was starting to drive herself crazy thinking about it when he finally spoke up.

"I have been in my Prime for five years now, with this same level of intensity and overwhelming onslaught of emotions and instincts. I do not want a mate, because I do not want to share my life with anyone. I have never spent any amount of time with anyone, other than my family... nor do I have the desire to." he tilted his head, his eyes meeting hers as she stared up at him. "I do not -want- a mate. I need one in order to continue to maintain my control and sanity."

She was silent for quite a few moments, just processing his words. She knew that he was telling the truth. Dragons rarely lied since it was so easy for another dragon to sense if they did... but she wondered why he had decided to tell her something so personal.

Sighing softly, she continued to the next display. "You think that we'd match well, since we both want to be alone." he didn't answer, but she wasn't really asking a question anyway. "You must have had a hard time finding a female that would agree to that little plan." she mused, glancing at him to see a whirlwind of thoughts flicker through his eyes.

Though she wanted to pretend that she was surprised by this or that she was disgusted.... It wasn't really a shocking sort of news. Many male dragons had gone mad and had then been 'put down' for the good of the species, and for the good of the one afflicted.

The Transition which took an adolescent males emotions, and the Prime which gave them back at maturity were both difficult to go through. Many lesser dragons and several who were too powerful for their own good, had perished to the experience.

What -did- surprise her was the fact that he had survived five years of the intensity that most males only experienced for the first year, at the most.

"It's not getting any easier, is it?" she wondered, amazed that he had maintained such control for so long.

"It's getting worse." his tone was simple fact, but she knew that he must worry about losing control or losing his sanity at any given time.

She glanced down at the bowl of now melted ice cream and sighed softly, using a short charm to refreeze it. Munching silently while they continued to wander around the exhibits.

Her mind was even more distracted now and she barely noticed that there were now several groups of people in the museum with them. Between her dragon pestering her with the instinct to accept this powerful male as a mate, and her own personal emotions; which heavily tied to her own memories.... Not to mention the fact that she felt terrible for him that he had been through so much hell. Probably more than she even realized. By the time they finally wandered back out of the building, she was about to scream with everything whirling through her mind.

They threw their empty containers away and trotted back down the boardwalk.

It was later in the day by now and there were a few brave souls making their way through the shops, only taking enough time out in the sun to walk from one to the other.

Lark took a deep breath of the salty air and sighed softly. "Give me a while, to think about it. We can get to know each other a little better.... Even if we wont be living together, I don't intend to bind myself to someone that I cant even stand to be around." she glanced at him and saw a measure of relief flash across his features.

"I understand. I can live with that."