Macha's Journey

The daylight crept through the cracks between the curtains and Tyr ran his fingers down his stiff cotton shirt as he unb.u.t.toned it. Now that his impending death was nothing but a nightmare, he wanted to rest. It had been a nerve-racking week, and he was thankful that Aži would not die.

As he made his way to the bed, he realized it had been over a month since he last enjoyed being with Macha. The day she returned from her mission; they had been too busy, and she was too tired for them to have s.e.x.

Now he admired how her body pressed against the mattress and how her dark hair glided across her shoulders as her feet wiggled in the air. The small of her back curved seductively, and he tossed his shirt onto the floor.

The bed dipped when he sat down on it, and he traced his fingers lightly along her spine. Her skin was smooth beneath his rough hands.

Leaning over, he brushed his lips against her shoulder, "Why don"t we read that later?"

His deep voice reverberated against her shoulder and the hot air from his breath played across her skin. Macha dropped the paper and reached up to place her hand against his cheek. She tilted her head up so he could kiss her. Their lips pressed against each other and he nibbled her lower lip.

Her voice sounded husky when she asked, "What about Aži? He"s going to lay the egg soon."

Tyr turned her over and tugged on the silk waistband that kept her robe closed. The black fabric fell to the side, exposing the woman he longed to be with for the past month.

"It"s been a month."

His open l.u.s.t for her reminded her body that they did not seek each other out the night she returned. He kissed her roughly as he helped her take the robe off.

Her breathing quickened as she felt his hardness pressed against his pants. He took a handful of her hair and pulled it back so he could deepen his kiss.

It caused her skin to tingle, and she broke away from his heated kiss so she would be able to pull his pants below his hips. She pushed him onto the bed and wrapped her fingers around his hardened shaft.

Tyr closed his eyes; the way she stroked him made it hard for him to hold back, so pulled away.

"I want to be inside you."

****

Later that day, Tyr held Macha in his arms; they had made love and got some much-needed sleep. He held the paper that explained how to take care of Aži and his new egg. It had a long list with many notes added to the sides of the margin. His eyebrows lifted, and he gave a sigh. The instructions basically said to let the wyvern do what he wanted and that they could not do any missions for the next two months.

Macha"s breathing changed as she woke up. She had been resting her head on Tyr"s chest and slurped up the saliva that had been collecting in her mouth. Embarra.s.sed, she quickly grabbed her robe and used it to wipe up the pool that formed on his chest.

"Do you feel refreshed?" he asked.

He did not mind seeing her this way because it was something only he got to witness. No one else had the privilege of experiencing her lack of daintiness while she slept. Although he enjoyed it, he knew she always felt embarra.s.sed during moments like that.

Her head was still foggy from the nap and she wiped her eyes.

"Yeah."

When she looked to see what he was reading, she realized it was the list of instructions that Kicho left for them. He held it in one hand and waved it around testily.

Laying back down in his arms, Macha asked, "What do you think about it?"

Tyr flicked the paper across the room. Annoyance touched his face, and he watched it float to the ground.

"Basically Aži gets a two-month vacation and gets to act up and do whatever he wants. I can"t say I"m pleased."

He did not appreciate that the instructions implied to treat the wyvern as if it were royalty. Never in his entire time with Aži did he ever coddle his friend as much as these instructions expected.

"Well, he is having a baby. He would naturally wish to look after the egg and make sure it is safe."

The annoyance in Tyr"s voice made her want to laugh. She did not understand why he was so upset.

In a light-hearted tone, she added, "Besides, you agreed that we wouldn"t go out on any missions for at least a month, anyway."

As she said this, she stroked his long dark bangs. A few stray hairs had fallen into his face and she pushed them back.

Having her company eased the annoyance he felt earlier while reading the list of dos and don"ts. He got up off the bed and began getting dressed.

"Come. We have to get Aži"s things and prepare."

When the two opened the door to Macha"s bedroom, Jóhanna came running down the hall.

"Aunty Mama, what can I feed Aži?"

Macha looked up at Tyr. He read the whole paper, and the wyvern was technically his, so she wanted him to make the decisions during this time for their small friend.

The child actively preferred Macha to himself; this was nothing new since most kids feared him.

He cleared his throat and mustered up as gentle a voice as he could, "Uncle and Auntie are going to get his food. You can feed him when we get back."

The prospect of being able to feed Aži caused a bright smile to spread across Jóhanna"s face. She initially had not liked this man who supposedly was with Aunty Mama, but now he did not seem that bad.

"Really?" she squealed, unsure if he was being honest.

She hugged Tyr"s leg and jumped up and down.

"Please please please, can I?"

The child"s shrieks hurt his ears and he stiffened. His eyes looked down at the small child who clung to him, unsure of what to do.

"Yeah. I said you could. If you want, you can take care of him while he"s here."

With those words, the girl squeezed Tyr"s leg and shouted, "I love you, Uncle Tyr!"

She then ran to her room to relay the good news to Aži. Her door slammed and the whirlwind of excitement left the hallway as quickly as it had come.

Macha laughed so hard that tears formed in the corner of her eyes.

"You just made her day. That"s adorable!"

What made the reaction better was how stiffly Tyr reacted when the little girl hugged him. She knew he hated being touched by strangers so her niece"s declaration of love was adorable to witness.

***

Aži appreciated that Jóhanna made a nest of stuffed animals around him. It would ensure his egg did not roll away and offered warmth. The girl had been helpful, and he acknowledged that she took excellent care of him throughout his stay. Her fanatic love of his race seemed weird at first, but he recognized that she was a good child that was very thoughtful.

Suddenly a cramp formed in his stomach and he felt a pressure in his lower half. His eyes grew wide, and he realized he it was time for the egg to come out.

Jóhanna watched, mesmerized, as Aži drew himself up and spread his legs apart. His wings stretched outward into the air, the tips reached above her shoulder. As he stood, he moved his head up and down.

"You can do it," she whispered, hypnotized by the chapter of life happening in front of her.

She had never witnessed a child being born; it being a wyvern baby made it even better.

A large egg the size of her head pushed out from beneath Aži"s tail. It rested against her stuffed animals and seemed to ripple with movement. The sh.e.l.l comprised more colors than crayons she owned, and they swirled together and shone like oil in water.

After laying the egg, he was confused about what he should do. He looked at the girl for guidance but realized she was only about four. He wrapped his body around his baby and waited for Tyr and Macha to return. This was the first time he ever laid an egg and did not want anything to happen to it.

Jóhanna clapped her hands. "Good job Aži! It looks beautiful."

She then grabbed a pile of papers and her crayons so she could draw a picture of this amazing event. Since Aunty Mama and Uncle Tyr left earlier, she wanted to make a book on what happened to share her adventure with them.