The Divine Gambit Ch. 17

With that not an option, Beth eventually found a way to solve the maze closer to its intention. After all, she had something no mana-insensitive child would ever have -- a dragon mate she was bound to and could feel. Rather than struggle more or try to feel the mana herself, she placed my hand on the red ball and then listened to what my mind sent to her reactively, solving the maze by listening to my reactions to the changing mana flows rather than experiencing them herself. When the table eventually flashed green, signaling that we had completed the maze, she turned and hugged me tightly, seemingly even more pleased that we had done it together than that she had finished it.

From there, we tried another dozen games and puzzles throughout the bottom floor of the museum. Beth struggled with most of them, and one display completely turned off when we approached it, seemingly disabled just by Beth's presence. She pouted slightly, having been interested in reading the information and seeing the exhibit, but wasn't overly bothered.

Afterward, we stopped by a booth where a man was displaying a collection of heavily infused mana materials in specialized containers, providing a chance for the youth of the city to feel more extreme natural energies. He had samples of coral from islands in the Pacific, several different rocks from mountains in Nepal and Chile, ice collected from Antarctica and Svalbard, and sand from Yemen. There was a throng of children holding their hands up to the openings of the containers, feeling each of the different sensations and loudly describing them to each other in excited voices.

Of course, Beth didn't experience anything near the rich tapestry of mana swirling in the air like I did. She watched the children, looked at all of the samples, and listened as the man explained what was going on but didn't really engage. That is until the man put on a set of industrial oven mitts and brought out a final container he had been holding in reserve. The children around us oohed and aahed as he explained that inside this particular container, there were samples from a volcano in Indonesia and that they could look inside, but they needed to be very careful.

Beth and I watched as the children held their hands up to the opening and remarked at how they could feel the warmth even from a few feet away. After they had all had a turn, their chaperone carefully guided them along to another room, and the man turned to Beth and me, asking if we wanted to see the infused stones.

What neither he nor I were expecting was for Beth to accept. Nor did we anticipate that she would pick up the container with her bare hands. The man was frozen in shock as Beth, still unable to feel the mana flowing out from the boiling stone, reached inside the container and picked it up to get a closer look. When she pulled it out and held it up to her face, smiling at me and saying that she could feel the warmth coming off of it now, he nearly fainted. What I'm sure he missed was that Beth wasn't actually holding the stone -- it remained a hair's breadth away from her skin, floating on an invisible patch of shielding that protected her from everything. She carefully placed the stone back into the container and then returned it to the still-astonished man, grasping my hand with hers as we walked away.

We spent another hour carefully weaving between groups of children to play with the few exhibits Beth could interact with, reading and observing the ones she couldn't. I was initially disappointed that there were so few things she could participate in, but as we sat down in the cafeteria for a moment, she set me straight.

"James, as cool as it would be to be able to do magic, two weeks ago, I was struggling just to stay alive. I didn't know any of this existed -- and I don't just mean the magic stuff. Feeling this free to be myself, loved and supported by you and Sam and Cynthia, it would be wrong to complain that I didn't also get to be a witch, too. Just knowing that this all exists and being able to experience it through you is more than enough for me."

I smiled gratefully at her and held her hand as she leaned against me. "I did have something I wanted to ask you about today. I didn't want to bring it up around Sam because I needed to know how you felt first. It's a bit -- well, alright, it's far too soon to discuss in a more normal relationship, but that isn't us."

I paused, trying to decide if I wanted to just come out and say it or if I wanted to lead up to it more, and Beth poked me in the ribs. "Hey," she said, leaning back against me and looking directly up into my face, "Don't get lost in your head before you say what you were going to say."

"Okay. I wanted to feel out your opinions on marriage. For us. In practicality, we already are, and I really enjoy being with you, so I'm not opposed to it in the legal sense, although I'll have to talk to someone, maybe Antonin, maybe Ev, about how it works with multiple partners. I'm just assuming that it does work because no one has batted an eye so far."

Beth pursed her lips, pushing them out in a pout, and then responded, "James, why do I hear a 'but' still coming."

I smirked and continued, "But I don't know how you feel about it. Typically, people get married to demonstrably increase their commitment to each other -- something we don't really need to do because bond -- or to celebrate their love and be showered with attention from their friends and families. Which, I was explicitly asked to not reach out to mine and you didn't seem all that inclined to interact with yours.

"So, I was hoping to touch base with you and get your initial thoughts on the matter. I wasn't planning on doing anything soon. I know in my heart of hearts that Sam will want a full ceremony with a whole bunch of people invited and to be pampered like a princess during the day of and the week after. But for you, sunshine, I don't know what you would want, and I don't want to make decisions for you; I want to make them with you. I don't think there's anyone either of us would invite that wouldn't be Sam, Cynthia, Ev -- people who already know just how tightly intertwined we are already and for whom our marriage wouldn't change anything. So, do you have any strong feelings? Do you want to have a ceremony? Do you want to invite people? Do you even want to?"

"Sunshine?"

I snorted. "Is that what you took from that?"

She shook her head, gently rocking both our bodies as she leaned against me, "No. I like it, actually. I was just stalling for a moment because that wasn't the 'but' I was expecting. Um, so, I don't know? Before last week, it hadn't crossed my mind that I would ever let someone inside my bubble, you know? I definitely don't want to invite my family. I don't think I would mind a private ceremony with us and Sam and probably Zoey by then, but I also don't really feel like I need one right now. I do feel kinda sad and pathetic having no one to share it with."

I wrapped my arms around her and held her close, "I'm sorry, Beth. That wasn't my goal. In order to make what you want a reality, I needed to ask."

She wrapped her hands over mine, pinning my arms in place where they held her. In that moment, I felt at peace, unburdened, and serene. She echoed largely the same feelings back at me -- a touch of embarrassment lingering, a dash of gratitude, and a splash of curiosity adding flavor to her existence. We sat quietly for a minute.

Eventually, I broke the silence and asked, "Did you want to check out the other section."

She wiggled her head, "Nah. It's not nearly as interesting now."

"Did you want to go home, then?"

Another wiggle. "I was really enjoying our time pretending to be a normal couple, actually. Is there anything else you had planned for our day out?"

"I didn't have anything planned, but I have an idea for something you probably haven't done and should enjoy either way. I need to find a place, though."

"Cool. You're comfy."

I chuckled. "You did seem to immediately come to that conclusion as soon as you met me. Even in the car, you were content to use me as a seat."

Beth shrugged as I searched for a nearby location on my phone, "Even before you grew after shifting that first time, you were big enough to just hold all of me at once. You're strong but not aggressive with it. Just felt right to be near you. Safe. It was different."

I flexed my arms around her, pulling her tightly against me. "It was odd at first, and I just went along with it because it was the least crazy thing happening, but now, I don't mind it. It's unquestionably you. Actually, that's wrong. I don't just not mind it; I enjoy it. It's reassuring."

"Good, because I wasn't planning on stopping."

"Did you want to stay here like this, then, or head out?"

"Let's go do your other thing. There'll always be more time for cuddling later."

Beth held my hand as we left the museum, making a point to thank Robbie on our way out when we saw he was still working the entrance. Surprisingly, Beth's grasp on my hand wasn't quite the needily demanding embrace I was familiar with. Instead, it was a comforting, relaxed clasp, keeping us in contact without being exacting on me. The underlying anxiety Beth had when I first met her was almost completely eradicated. Her new demeanor perfectly fit our leisurely stroll through the city, calmly maneuvering our way through the occasionally crowded sidewalk to my target.

Surprisingly, Beth didn't ask where we were going. We didn't even talk after leaving the museum. She walked close to me, but that was more an unconscious reaction to the temperature than any intentional act. The inside of the museum, filled with children running to and fro, had been quite warm. While moving south to Philly had provided what felt like an extra week of summer, the hint of cold from the impending winter was present here now in the occasional swells of the wind. Despite the weather, or perhaps because of the proximity it encouraged, Beth seemed to enjoy walking in silence, reveling in the momentary respite from the demands of her past life and the insanity of our new one.

She was surprised when we arrived at our destination. It wasn't anything special, a chain takeout restaurant, but I was reasonably certain it was something Beth wouldn't have ever tried before.

She looked at me with an eyebrow raised, "Vivi Bubble Tea?"

"Yeah. I figured this was the kind of vapid, commercialized indulgence you wouldn't have ever tried before. I thought we could each get a drink and then walk around the park that's a couple blocks over."

"We're going back outside?"

"If that's alright. We can sit here if you'd prefer."

Beth shook her head as she reached to open the door, "No, it would be a waste to not be out with a day this nice when I can actually enjoy it. But, James, what's bubble tea?"

"Well, tea. Especially in the states at chains like this, it's almost more tea-milkshake, with a bunch of milk and sugar added to make it sickeningly sweet, but the base is tea. The bubble part comes from little balls of tapioca that are added, giving you something to chew on while you drink the tea."

"Is it good?"

"I've heard some people complain that they found the texture of the balls unpleasant. But I wouldn't have brought you here if I didn't like it."

She glanced at the menu above the counter and turned back to me, a slightly panicked look on her face as she asked, "Do you know what you're going to get?"

"Nope. I haven't been to a place like this in at least six months, and I always just picked something on the fly, so I'll need a minute with the menu, too."

She turned back towards the counter, standing directly in front of me, leaning back against my torso and pulling my arms around her. After a minute, we both knew what we wanted and placed our orders. Beth surprised me by ordering something hot, which I knew was on the menu and the original way it was served but had never crossed my mind as something people would still want.

She clutched her steaming cup close to her chest as we crossed the street back outside, taking tentative sips from the oversized straw. Her green eyes opened wide when she sucked up the first tapioca ball before an amused grin grew as she chewed it.

As we crossed into the green of the park, a place that I was surprised to see had a massive, intricate fountain, a carousel, and a minigolf course that included a putting section through a replica Liberty Bell, Beth gave her conclusion, "This is pretty good, actually. I like it."

We took a lap around the park before settling into a seat on a bench to people-watch. Now firmly in the afternoon, there were plenty of families and school-age kids around. Beth leaned back against me, cupping her drink with both hands and holding it close to her face. I wrapped an arm around her, and she sighed contentedly.

For half an hour, we sat still in the center of the city, allowing everyone else to move around us. For once, we weren't pressured to go anywhere, to meet anyone, to do anything. No deadline was hanging over us, no world-changing piece of knowledge waiting around the corner to shake our foundations again. There was no other person I had a meeting scheduled with that would change my life. For a quiet moment on a park bench in Philadelphia, Beth and I had peace.

After half an hour of simply cuddling on a public bench, I had long finished my drink, and the few remaining tapioca balls in Beth's cup were no longer warm. We discarded the two cups and walked together back in the general direction of the apartment. I could feel from Beth that she was enjoying our time spent doing nothing -- despite thoroughly enjoying our time at the museum, having very few opportunities to just relax in the past meant that just sitting on the bench without her head being overwhelmed with worries about today and tomorrow and next week was an intensely rewarding experience for her in a surreal way.

So, rather than head directly to a subway station and return to the apartment immediately, we meandered through the streets in the general direction. It took nearly an extra hour, but I was perfectly content to stroll through the city with my sunshine on my arm, and she seemed quite pleased to be there. At one of the final intersections, only a couple blocks from the apartments, there was a broad puddle, large enough that I would have to stretch my stride to cross it. Beth approached it hesitantly and then squealed, at first in terror but then in relief, when I picked her up in a princess carry and crossed the puddle without incident.

When we reached the other side of the road, she started preparing herself to be set down, but I had other ideas. I carried her all the way back to the apartment. She tried to insist initially but then relented, leaning her head against my chest and watching my face as I brought her home. I was going to set her down just outside our door, but she wiggled against me, reaching down into my pocket to snag my key and unlock the front door, still perched in my arms.

Inside, I carried her to the couch and sat down so that she was on my lap. I untied and slipped off her shoes, and she sighed contentedly. For a moment, we sat in silence, and then she pulled my face down to meet hers, kissing me hungrily, as though it were the first time she had seen me after years of longing.

When we broke apart, she said, "I had a really nice day today with you, James. It was really different from anything else I've ever done."

"Different?" I asked.

"You had this really nice vibe going today. Calm, low-key, intimate and tender without the intensity or chaos I'm used to. And, this is going to be strange for me to say, but I understand now why last week you were freaking out."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"At one point, when we were walking around the park, I saw these parents watching their kids on the carousel. They were both scowling, then would put on the fakest smiles when their kid circled around and looked at them. Standing there, next to each other without standing together, you know? Didn't say a word to each other.

"It hit me how different it is with you and me. Even if the two of us have to look after Zoey's child at some point, we won't be like that. We'll be standing together, and even if we don't say anything, it will be because we're happy, not because we can't stand each other. And, I thought about trying to have a day like today with anyone else I've ever been with, and I couldn't really place it.

"Which made it sink in that, like, without you being who you are, this could've been awful. I could've been tied to anyone. And I know that you're the dragon and you're the only one in the world who could've done this, but just thinking about being in this kind of relationship with anyone else made me really value what you've done for me, the lengths you've gone to make me comfortable and happy and still independent, despite literally owning me. I still have my own bedroom here -- not that I ever want to use it -- but I still have it if I ever need space for myself because you thought it was important I have a place to retreat to if I needed to."

"Beth, I really haven't done anything extraordinary or really inconvenienced myself all that much. I just did what any good person would do."

She sighed, "Yes, that's what makes it extraordinary. There wasn't a reward waiting at the end for your good behavior."

"I don't think--"

"Shut. Up. James," she said, enunciating each word firmly. "You know what? If you aren't going to accept that you've done anything for me, then I'm going to straight up ask for something I want from you to get you to admit it."

Beth shifted, sitting up and straddling my lap. She didn't say anything right away, looking directly into my eyes, her green orbs digging into my soul as she worked herself up to ask for what she wanted.

"Anything."

"I want you to be more assertive in bed with me. I want you to take control. I want the dragon."

"Okay."

"You don't need to do anything you're uncomfortable with or be too far-- Wait, What? 'Okay'?"

"Yes. Okay. I can do that."

She squinted at me, "Why did I think you wouldn't really be into that if you're just going to go for it right away? Not that I thought you were submissive or anything, but, I got the impression you were more lovey-dovey than the firm hand I wanted."

I rocked my head side to side, "Well, I could feel that you wanted more from me. That you wanted to relinquish control since, for the first time in your life, you had someone you could trust to share it with. Not that you wanted to rigidly defer to me at all times, but that you were interested in letting me make the decisions except when you had a strong opinion on something. You were tired of always having to be in control and wanted someone else to have a shift at the helm. I knew you enjoyed our second time, which was certainly more of the real you than our first time, so I was expecting this. That you actually came out and asked for it makes it a lot easier for me to do it for you."

"And yet you still don't think you've done anything special for me."

I smirked. "Not really. I'm not trying to be difficult here, but in my mind, doing good requires some sort of sacrifice, alright? And I'm not giving up anything to do this with you. I get to try something I haven't done much of before, but enjoyed the time I tried it, with a beautiful woman who trusted me enough to place her desires in my hands and asked me to make them come true for her. Dreams that happen to align with the brand new second set of instincts growing in my head. On top of that, I'm not even giving up regular soft, intimate, gentle experiences because you went and convinced Sam to join us, and what you're asking me to move away from with you is precisely what she wants.