by Silvia Rojas
"Just follow me," River said as he got up. Melanie did so, and the two went downstairs to a basement area, where he opened the door to reveal a very large swimming pool. Melanie goggled; this was not something she expected to find in a house as quaint as River’s. "Here we are."
"Do I have to get in, or...?"
"No. In fact, it's better if you don't." River’s gaze wavered as he spoke. “The concepts we discuss in our group meetings don’t come from thin air. The secret origin of these concepts is something I want to share with you, because I trust you enough to tell you the truth. However, first, I ask that you never tell anyone about what you’re about to see. These things are secret for a reason, and they’re not ready to be exposed to the world yet.”
Melanie opened her mouth slightly, but nothing came out. She was rather flattered at River’s trust in her, but the sheer amount of secrecy was a bit unnerving. Still, she hoped that learning the origin would help her understand River’s teachings more, and so she finally gathered her words enough to speak. “My lips are sealed. I’ll keep your secret, no matter what.”
“Thank you.” River looked to the side, then leaned in and gave Melanie a brief, nervous kiss on the lips. Seeing him so close to shy was something of a shock to her; this was clearly not a secret he tossed around freely. When their lips parted, River added, “Whatever you see, don’t be scared. You are safe. I would never do anything to hurt you,”then strode around to the deep end of the pool. He stared at Melanie for a moment, sucked in a breath, then dove into the water (with remarkable form at that).
Melanie expected him to come back up, and when he didn't immediately, she cautiously stepped closer to the pool. Something did not look right with the shadow under the water; it was entirely too big for a person. Her heart thumping with panic, she ran to the other side of the pool. She was about to dive in and save River when the water began to ripple and bubble unnaturally, which made her stand stock still.
She was greeted by a massive, elongated thing coming out of the water. A scaly blue head, with fins, and most importantly, teeth. Many sharp teeth. The creature snorted, then made a strange muffled roar at her. There was no way she was going to stick around to find out if that thing was friendly; she ran out with a terrified scream, her heart feeling like it was going to explode out of her chest. She nearly tripped going up the stairs, but made a slick recovery and kept climbing. She was barely aware of her feet touching the ground as she fled, and she might have knocked some items over as she made her escape. Soon, she flung open the door of River's house and sped to her car. She was out of breath and shaking so badly that she fumbled the keys on her first try, cursing as she went to pick them up. River's voice only barely registered on the edge of her senses as she got into her car, nearly falling into the seat. Her keys missed the ignition, and then she became aware of something knocking on her window.
"Melanie!" It was River, now soaking wet. "Wait!"
Melanie shuddered, then started her car up and rolled down her window. River didn't appear to have any extra monstrous appendages on him, so perhaps he was safe to talk to. "River, what the hell is going on?!"
"Melanie, please, come back in and listen to me," River pleaded. "I can explain everything."
"Only if whatever that thing I saw isn't waiting to eat me in there," Melanie replied.
"It won't, I promise." River stepped away from Melanie's car to give her room to exit. "Please, just hear me out."
“Can’t you tell me out here?” Melanie asked, shuddering. “Aside from the fact that you have a pet sea monster, I don’t know what’s so shocking that you can’t tell me out here.”
“I… I’d rather not. You never know who might be listening, and like I said, these things are not ready for the outside world yet,” River said.
“Fine.” Melanie wanted to add a condition to her acceptance, but couldn’t find the words. She still had some hesitation, but if she stayed in the car, she’d never find out what happened. With her hands still shaking, she opened the car door and stepped out. She followed River back into his house without saying a word, then sat down in one of his armchairs. "Well, I'm listening. And if I hear any indication that the Loch Ness Monster in your swimming pool is coming back, I'm out."
River sighed, his gaze away from Melanie. "Melanie, that monster was me."
"What?"
"Watch carefully." River held out his arm and closed his eyes. Melanie nearly jumped out of her chair when a large fin seemed to flow out of the side of River's arm. "This is a water dragon's fin."
Melanie had no words. It was just a fin, but it was on a human body, and it had just appeared as though it was supposed to have been there all along. She stared at the fin, waiting to see if the transformation would progress. Mercifully for her psyche, it didn't; River dismissed it and it flowed back into his arm.
"I am the youngest in my clan of water dragons," River explained. "My clan goes back centuries at the very least, perhaps more."
"I don't think you're starting at the very beginning," Melanie said. "I think the most important part is the fact that apparently, dragons exist."
"Believe what you'd like," River said. "You've seen my true form already. You can choose to believe your eyes or not to. I'm not going to force you, especially not at a time like this."
Melanie sighed and massaged her forehead. "Let's say this isn't just a fever dream and I really saw you as a dragon. What does this mean for me? Or for all humans?"
"We dragons have lived through the ages, though modern times have sent us more undercover than we've ever been. More than just me, there are multiple types of dragons and many clans within those types. Not long ago, the heads of several clans came together and decided that dragons should put into motion a plan to reconnect with humans. Certain dragons would be selected to reach out to humans in a way they saw fit. My father was chosen first, and then he passed the role to me." River closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “In ancient times, dragons and humans lived together in a sort of uneasy acceptance. We could be friends, but we could also be foes. When technology began to advance, humans began to hunt us in hopes of gathering materials and funds for the new technology. It got so bad that we dragons, as a whole, decided to go into hiding until a day where humans were more open to coexisting with us.”
"That's not answering my question," Melanie said sharply, wishing she had cut in a bit sooner. "What does this mean for us as people? What else are you hiding from me that's going to rock my perception of the world?"
"Melanie, I'm sorry." River's gaze was now on the floor. "I don't know if you'll understand."
"Try me. I've already learned that dragons exist. What could be worse than that?"
"I care a lot about you, Melanie," River said. "I've been around you enough to know that you're a good person. I enjoy being with you. I look forward to when you sign on into the chatroom every day. I understand completely if you want to be done with all of this mystical dragon nonsense, but... I'll miss you."
Those last three words cut into Melanie's heart. She felt bad; this man clearly had strong feelings for her, and yet she was judging him for what he was, not for his intent. He showed no sign of ever wanting to hurt her; he may have acted suspicious, but nothing he ever did seemed to have any malicious intent behind it. If anything, he had been inviting and inclusive, making sure that she was comfortable in the group and not judging her for not catching on to his concepts. Still, she had had quite a shock. There was still a lurking suspicion, and she wanted to dismiss it. "I don't want you to hide anything else from me. If there's anything else you need to tell me, tell me now."
"I'll tell you everything." River pulled up a chair in front of Melanie and sat down. "The other members of the club are dragons, too. Fay is your typical fire dragon, Leo is a lightning dragon, Erin is an earth dragon, and Marissa is a water dragon, like I am. The pendant I gave you allows you to understand dragon telepathy, and it can also grant you access to areas w
arded by dragons."
"But... why did you choose me?" Melanie asked. "I don't understand how I fit into all this."
River exhaled softly. "Full dragons have a sort of intuition for finding dragon descendants. When I saw you, I had a feeling that somewhere, even distantly, you had a dragon in your ancestry. I thought that, if I started bringing humans and dragons together with you, I might be able to help you discover a piece of your history."
Melanie's eyes went wide. "You can tell just by looking?"
"It's not always correct," River said, "but a dragon's intuition for these things has proven to be fairly reliable over the ages."
"I... huh." Melanie tried to think about what that could mean for her, but couldn't even come up with anything solid or relevant that made sense. "So... do all dragons have human forms like you and the club members do?"
"Most, but not all. Transformation magic is a relatively recent discovery among dragons. A lot of us were quick to use it in the face of the world changing around us, but there are a few well-hidden purists that have never taken on a human form." A faint smile twitched at River's lips, a hint of enthusiasm for the subject at hand.
"They must be very well hidden," Melanie mused aloud.
"They are." River sighed. "Melanie... do you forgive me for keeping this secret from you?"
"Yes." The answer fell out of Melanie's mouth faster than she expected it to. "I know that you've never tried to hurt me. If anything, you try hard to make sure I'm doing well in your group. We have a lot of fun together, and if I were to lose that... I'd miss you, too."
"I'm glad." River paused and the room was silent for a minute. "Do you really feel the same way about me that I feel about you, even with all my fine print?"
"Yes," Melanie said again. "I'm sorry I freaked out, River. I think you understand why, though. It's not every day you're face to face with a bunch of really sharp teeth and definitely not sharp teeth on a creature you had no idea existed."
"I do understand. You don't encounter transforming humans every day, either." River leaned forward in his chair. "Thank you. If it isn't too much trouble, I have a request for you."
"And what would that be?"
"I want you to keep going around with me. More importantly, I'd... like to make us an official item, if you're willing." There was something puppy-like in River's eyes as he stared at Melanie, almost pleading.
"'Make us an official item?' You talk like an old man sometimes," Melanie said, grinning.
"It's true. But what do you say?"
"If you're saying you want to date me or be in a relationship with me, then I say yes!" Melanie stood up and closed the distance between her and River before kissing him on the forehead. "You're a good man, River. I don't care if I'm dating a dragon. I care that I'm dating you."
"That's the best thing you could ever say," River said, putting his arms around Melanie. "I love you, Melanie. I really do."
"I love you too."
The duo leaned into a deep, loving kiss. It seemed that they were afraid to part, lest they lose their connection to each other, but the kiss did end eventually. "Do you think we should tell the others?" River asked.
"If you don't have a problem with it, then I don't. You should make it an official announcement in the chatroom," Melanie said.
River chuckled, "That'd be something. 'Here's today's update: Melanie and River are an item.'"
"Can't you just say we're dating or in a relationship?" Melanie giggled and gave River a playful shove.
"All right, all right. 'Melanie and River are in a relationship, officially." River leaned forward and gave Melanie a kiss on the lips. "Maybe we should tell them right now. I can go get my computer."
"That sounds like fun," Melanie said. "Let's do this."
Chapter 8
After stopping to dry off some more (which he had completely forgotten to do in the heat of the moment), River returned to Melanie with his laptop in tow. "Let's give them the good news, shall we?"
"Sounds like a plan. Is it loading yet?" Melanie tried to look over River's shoulder to see where he was going on the computer.
"Come on, be patient... I just turned it on," River said, watching his computer boot up.
"Being patient is hard," Melanie whined. "I want to see their reactions."
River tapped his password into the computer. "Look, we're at the desktop now."
"Okay, I get it, I don't need a play-by-play," Melanie said.
Soon, the chat program was up, and River began typing. "Hello, everyone. I have an important announcement to make."
"Are we getting a new member?" Fay asked.
"Did we lose someone?" Erin asked afterward.
"Don't keep me in suspense!" Marissa chimed in.
"Quick, tell us, my break's almost over," Leo wrote.
"Melanie is with me right now," River typed. "I wanted to announce that we are officially dating."
"There we go, bomb dropped," Melanie said. "This is where the fun begins."
"This isn't a prank, Melanie," River said back.
"I know, but I really want to see how they'll take it."
Indeed, the responses were flowing in. Leo gave a quick "Congratulations!"
Marissa was next, with a "That's wonderful! Have fun, you two!" and a heart emote.
"I'm so glad you found someone, Riv! I have to say, I kind of thought this was going to happen from the beginning," Fay said.
"Do you want a medal?" Erin's response seemed sarcastic at first glance, but she was still typing. Eventually, she added, "jk, im happy for you two, have fun."
"Oh, Erin, always a charmer," Melanie said. "I'm going to tell them thanks."
"Be my guest, but do something to let them know it's you," River said, scooting the laptop over towards Melanie.
"Mel says thank you," Melanie typed in. "There, is that okay?" she asked.
"Perfect."
"Hi Melanie!" Marissa replied. "Have fun over there!"
"I'll be sure to pass your congratulations on to her," River typed.
"What are you two up to?" Fay asked. "Just visiting?"
"Probably none of your business, wink wink," Erin quipped.
"Nasty," Marissa said.
"Not nasty, just what happens," Erin replied, adding a shrugging emote.
"I'll tell you more about what happened later," River typed in. "See you all later tomorrow." He then looked to Melanie. "Any last things you want to say to them?"
"That sounds so final when you put it that way," Melanie said. "Tell them I'll answer their questions when I get home."
"Sounds good to me." River typed in, "Melanie will answer your questions when she's home and at her own computer." Once he sent that message, he closed out of the chat room window and closed down his laptop. "Well, now that we've gotten that out of the way, is there anything you'd like to do? Together?"
"I can think of a few things," Melanie said. "But we never did actually go swimming together. How about that?"
"I'd like that," River said. "And I promise I'll keep my fins to myself this time."
"Well... you don't really have to," Melanie said through an awkward giggle. "I mean, it'd be nice to swim with you as a human, but if you'd prefer to be a dragon, so be it."
"That's very generous of you." River stood up and took a few steps towards where the basement was. "Shall we?"
"Right behind you." Melanie followed River back towards the basement. "I didn't bring my pendant... so I guess I won't be able to understand you if you want to be a dragon. I guess I should start bringing it from now on."
"It would help, yes, but if you forget, you're not doomed. I'll just have to play a game of dragon charades with you." River opened the door, looked to make sure Melanie was behind him, and went into the basement. Once they got there, he gave her a scrutinizing look. "Do you need to change, or are you wearing your swimsuit under your clothes?"
"I've already got it on," Me
lanie said. "But I left my towels and cover-up in the car. Sorry about that."
"Don't worry. I have plenty of towels," River said. "I'll make sure you're dry before you go."
"Thanks." Melanie looked towards the large pool. "How cold is the water?"
"I don't think it's that cold, but I might just be used to it," River said with a mischievous twist to his lips.
"Oh boy. Well, here goes nothing," Melanie said, taking cautious steps towards the stairs in the shallow end of the pool.
"Do what makes you comfortable, but that won't stop me from showing off a bit." Laughing, River went over to the deep end and backflipped into the pool. Melanie felt a twinge of nervousness in her chest, as she expected him to shift again, and the notion of sharing a pool with even a friendly dragon was still a bit unnerving. Fortunately, the River that came up was still quite human. "That's my favorite trick, but you get a lot of water in your nose if you're even slightly off."
