Girl Next Door

by Erik Schubach

  I turned us in a swooping glide to spiral down to Denver. They had a few areas reinforced for my dragon form. Quinn let out a whoop as the wind whipped past us, it was as exhilarating for her as it was me. I wonder how much of that is my emotions bleeding through the blood-tie and how much is hers. It is hard to tell anymore, we are like two parts of a whole now. God I love that woman!

  We got down to the city to land in the specially fortified courtyard by police headquarters. It had high walls and human snipers with high power rifles and bazookas all along the high surrounding walls. They built this area especially for when Quinn and I bring in the more dangerous magical beings like this griffon. Plus the meter thick reinforced concrete helicopter landing pad slash dragon landing pad is ideal for me.

  As I passed over the wall just barely above the guards, I quickly spun before Quinn could read my intentions and she spilled off my back and fell thirty feet down to the concrete below. She hissed and flicked her arms and legs and they were immediately covered in granite. She deftly landed in a skidding three point stance then started laughing boisterously as she ground to a halt with the sound of granite dragging on the concrete while I landed on the pad with the griffon.

  She walked over to me and rubbed me lovingly between my dragon eyes as I nuzzled her with my snout. I dissolved my dragon form and showed my smirking human form to her as the spotlights from the walls snapped on to illuminate the landing pad and the unconscious griffon. I was silently thankful that I had finally figured out how not to burn away my clothing when I let my dragon out. My clothing bill was getting astronomical and I was sometimes left in embarrassing situations walking around naked in Denver. Then I said in my Irish brogue, “Me ass isn't fat Agent Trask!” She knew I wasn't amused when I called her by the name she first wanted me to call her, which I never did unless I was chastising her.

  She chuckled and just pulled me into a kiss, then she said, “You and your Irish temper. Were you issued that with your red hair 'lass'?” She said, “lass," mocking my accent.

  I squinted my eyes and shook a fist playfully at her as armed men came streaming out of the station and into the courtyard. We ignored the men as we bantered back and forth while we absently flipped the griffon on its side.

  Sergeant Amanda Johnson was beside us snickering at our back and forth barbs and just absently handing us braided steel restraints as we hogtied the beast and lashed its wings down. The tall blonde detective in her smart business suit cleared her throat and raised one eyebrow at us.

  I blushed profusely and said, “Oh. I'll be begging your pardon Mandy.”

  She chuckled, rolling her eyes at us as she asked, “What do we have here?”

  Then Quinn went into professional agent mode. I just bit my lower lip in want as she said, “Accomplice in the water dragon murder of Oscar Westminster. This thing was the lookout that took down two police officers and a forest ranger yesterday.”

  Some of the men around us were glaring at the beast and I saw a couple kick it. Amanda asked, “Does it know its rights?”

  Quinn was already shaking her head, “No. It is a magical construct of flesh and death like the last one. It isn't real.”

  The man growled. “Real enough to kill our men! Oh... and one of our dragons.”

  My tall protector shook her head, I loved when her usually immaculate and professional hair was all wind tussled as it was just then. She straightened her professional blouse and jacket as she clarified, “I just mean it doesn't have its own consciousness or sense of identity. For lack of a better term, it is a zombie.”

  Amanda nodded understanding but still asked, “Are you sure? What if it is a thrall, they have been starting to pop up again?”

  I answered this time. “No, I can taste the fetid and twisted magic in the thing. Besides, it has no rune mark on its forehead. We need to find out who is controlling it.”

  Sergeant Johnson snapped at the men, “You heard our dragon. Get this piece of shit into holding. Don't worry about being gentle, it has no rights.”

  Humans can be so vindictive at times. Feck, there I go again, saying, “humans” I'm still human myself you know.

  Quinn and I looked at each other as eight men roughly dragged the griffon across the ground. She smiled at me and cocked an eyebrow. I understood what she was saying. We can read each others basic thoughts. I agreed with her, it was getting late and we should get some sleep before we try to figure out where that thing came from. Well, she mostly thinking about sleep.

  I smiled amorously at her then said offhandedly over to Amanda, “Hey Mandy, d'ya think you could be givin' us a ride home? Me car is up near Steamboat.”

  Quinn added, “We'll investigate this in the morning.”

  Our friend laughed at us. “I don't need any stinking blood-tie to know what you two are thinking. Yeah, I'll give you a ride home myself. Just give me a minute to finish up some paperwork.”

  Then she looked at me and tilted her head. Quinn whispered, “Your eyes love.” Oh! I concentrated and my enhanced sight faded. Oh, it was dark out. I felt like half my senses were blunted when I was human like this, like I could barely experience the world, but dragon eyes on a wee Irish lass disconcerts people for some reason. The only bonus was that I didn't have to smell everything, humans, no matter how many times they wash, still reek. Except Quinn, I swear her pheromones were designed specifically to target me. Her musk drives me crazy just having her near.

  We all shared a chuckle and we followed her into the station. My flesh warmed and tingled where Quinn had grabbed my hand and laced our fingers, walking slightly in front of me. I smiled. My Quinn, always my protector.