Chapter 6

Dracon and Karen returned to the cave just as the sun finished going down. Beth was mad as hell at both her kids but put that aside when she saw that Karen was safe. Dracon placed her right at the table then shifted to his human form.

"Karen, how are you doing?" he asked looking concerned.

"I'm hungry. Starved in fact but I just don't have the energy to cook." She replied.

"Don't worry about that. I have bread and cheese here." Said Beth and she placed them on the table in front of her. "Eat. You look pale. Didn't those assholes feed you?" Beth asked as Karen took some bread and began eating.

"Not a scrap." Karen said between bites. "I hate to say that when I was hiding in a hollowed out tree I was so hungry that I ate a few grubs. We needed the food in the worse of ways." Karen said trying to see if Beth would catch what she said. She missed it.

"Oh you poor child. I couldn't think I'd ever be that hungry." Beth made a silly face and every one chuckled.

"Well, I knew I had to eat and I just prayed the things would stay down as I had been throwing up. I did manage the night before to throw up on one of the asshole."

"Fear can do that. When I first was taken by Malazure I was so scared and almost right after the first time he took his pleasure I started throwing up just about everything but then I was already preg..." Beth looked at her again. "Karen do you think... Are you Pregnant?"

Karen smiled and looked to Dracon who was glowing with pride. He looked drunk with happiness. "I think Dracon will make a wonderful father. Don't you?"

Beth came around the table to hold Karen and placed her hand over the tiny bump in her tummy. This caught Beth by surprise as she felt it flutter. "You're showing already. You must be several months along. How could you not have told any one?"

"Beth I'm only about two months along, I think. My last moon was so light I could hardly credit it. And I'm due any time to miss my second. But with twins I expect to be huge." Karen said coyly.

"Twins? Are you sure?" she looked to Dracon who nodded. Beth would have said more but Malazure entered the cave and she ran to him. He shifted and took Beth into his arms for a passionate kiss. Karen was impressed that Beth could kiss for so long. But finally the two lovers separated and Beth looked around. "Where's Angel? Has something happened to her? Where is she?" Beth demanded.

"She's fine. Gram and Jess were near and she may be going to return with them. Then again, she was distracted when I left." He looked at Karen and Dracon when he said that.

Karen and Dracon couldn't hold back and started laughing and couldn't stop for a long time thinking how this was to unfold. Malazure was laughing almost as hard and for his pain was hit in the arm hard but it didn't hurt him that much as he caught Beth up in his arms again and started kissing her again.

It was near mid-night when Angel arrived with her surprise in tow. Karen refused to go to bed until she got there. Not wanting to miss a moment of the show. Beth was livid until Tal walked in. He had yet to shift back. Beth looked at the rather tall handsome being that entered the cave very shyly, hand in hand with Angel.

"Mom before you say anything, I know you have every right to be pissed at me but I had to help father and Karen."

"Who is this?" was all Beth could get out of her clinched lips.

Tal went down on one knee. "The man that would love to call you mother as your daughter has told me in no uncertain terms that she wasn't going to let me get away." Tal replied.

That did the trick and snapped Beth out of her anger. "What? Why would you call me mother I would think that would be wrong... " Beth started to absorb all of what he said. But before she could get her mind to work Angel spoke up.

"Mother. This is Talaviir, son of Kendra of the town of Deepcreek. He made the difference in this battle. He saved me and helped dad. When I first saw him I thought he was a god until he reached for me to help me up. Mother he's... He's... " Angel acted shy for a moment then straitened and looked down at her mother. "I have clamed him for my mate. He's mine and I feel like I'm going to explode with happiness." With that she screamed, turned and jumped into Tal's arms and kissed him passionately which he returned with equal passion.

Beth was so stunned that she looked like she was hardly breathing until Malazure took her into his arms. "I'm going to bed. You coming?" he asked.

"What, you agree with this? Has he asked permission from you?"

"Like he needs my permission. The only thing I would do is kill him if he rejected her. He's a lousy liar. He kept making calf's eyes at me when I was guised as Angel. I'd say he's loved her for a long time. There is one thing that they didn't tell you. He's Jettenedon's son and he killed Jettenedon while we were distracted by a big tree."

"He's Jettenedon's son but Jettenedon had no offspring."

"Jettenedon thought he had killed the boy when he slaughtered his mother's village. He almost did. The boy's been hunting Jettenedon for years. His mother brought him up very well though. He's kind and caring. He'll make Angel a good husband I think. After all of us have had some time to rest we should go to see Karen's mother and grandmother so that she can tell them the good news and get the padre to marry them." He tilted his head at the two lovebirds, "What do you think?"

"How do we keep the honeymoon from starting now?" Beth asked with a chuckle instead of answering the question he asked.

"I'm not that brave a man. I'd rather face down ten Jettenedon's than face my daughter and tell her she has to wait. Let them have their love." With that he picked up Beth and headed to the empty barracks. Dracon did the same with Karen and as he walked into their room and put the shield wall up he saw Angel leading Tal into her room.

It was three days later when everyone felt rested enough to want to do anything when Cal and the others of the group got in contact with Dracon to see what was going on and were told that Karen was safe and well. They were told to still come to the caves as there was going to be a celebration because of her rescue and they were invited. He didn't tell them it was also to celebrate and announce the pregnancy and he was looking forward to that.

Tal couldn't believe what was happening to him. Not only had he avenged his mother but also he had found his other half and mate. One of many surprised that he was in for was that Angel was an accomplished cook.

He notice that she was comfortable in what ever form she was in but tended to stay in either her half-breed form or shift to her human form. He also noted that she was well school in what she could do when it came to draconic magics. He had no one to train him and he realized that it was dangerous for him.

On a whim the next day he took a walk so he could talk to Malazure. He would have approach Dracon but the man was too busy beaming about being a father and it didn't seem right to take him a way from that. He found Malazure and approached. "Sir, could I have a moment of your time?"

"Sir? Are you talking to me son? I think you've more than earned the right to call me by name. By the way, I wanted to tell you I was fairly impressed with your skill in the battle; especially for someone who hadn't been used to fighting in his normal form for some time. Please call me Malazure."

"Uh, thanks. Malazure, I think there's a problem that I need some help with." deciding to get right to it.

Malazure turn a very serious eye on him. "Problem? What kind of a problem? Has something happened between you and my daughter?"

"Oh no sir, not that. It's, I was watching her and realized that even though we're nearly the same. She grew up with you and well I..." Tal looked down, feeling lost.

Malazure was impressed and could see where this topic was going. "You didn't have anyone. Your mother couldn't help you learn what dragonets needed to learn. Is that what you're saying?"

He nodded his head. "I can't even cast an illusion. Shifting is even hard for me to do. I don't think I'm doing it right. I was wanting to ask if you would be willing to help me remedy this."

Malazure was liking this guy more and more by the mintue. "I would be happy to. If you want we can start right now. I was going to go hunt but there's no rush. Why don't you shift for me so I can watch and see what you're doing wrong if anything. Some dragons don't have the talent for it no matter what they do."

Tal looked down at himself; he was back in his human form, "uh let me take these off. The ones I had when I shifted before were torn to shreds. These are my only other change of clothes." and started to strip. Once down to nearly nothing. Tal shifted.

Malazure knew the guy was going to need a lot of work to undo some of the things he had been doing wrong. After he watched Tal shift he knew he was right. First was to help him shift. Malazure told him what he was doing wrong and showed him how to do it right and still be able to go back. This took about an hour and it was discovered that Tal was limited in the number of times he could do it and soon was unable to shift any more. They took a break as Malazure told of what he knew of his Jettenedon's talents but couldn't remember much. When Tal had regained his energy, Malazure showed him some of the simple magics that just about all dragons could do, including Angel. Tal was surprised when after being shown how he could light a twig or a candle, he could do it. The flame wasn't very big but it was enough.

As the day wore on Tal learned many things. The best was that he could do illusions and with little effort. This made him very please. When the two males returned to their mates and Tal was wearing an interesting wrap. It let him be completely covered with out being restricted in his movements of his arms or wings or worry about it falling off. Angel liked it.

Gram and Jess got there 5 day's later. That's when Karen realized that Cobb had been killed and became very sad. Gram and Jess told her that Cobb died after he knew she had been freed and that he died happy with that knowledge.

With the knowledge that others were coming Angle asked Dracon if he would create a new set of caves for her and Tal which were in the same hill but around to the north. This left her old room for her parents to use and freed up the larger barracks. Dracon was only too happy to do this for them and made a nice cavern with an alcove off the main as the sleeping room. Dracon also knew that for a few days at least Karen's mother and grandmother would be staying for a few days so made another small room off the parchment supply room for them.

Talaviir was impressed and grateful that Dracon would do this and surprised when Dracon handed him a large sack of gold. "This hill is full of small veins of this. It seems only fitting it go to you and Angel. Besides I've still got enough from the last dig I did to last about another hundred years." then tilted his head as he looked at the man.

"Dracon, I feel I need to say something. You and your family have been the most astonishing group I have ever met. Don't get me wrong I love your sister but... I feel like, I don't know. Like I should do something more." Tal had not been looking at Dracon when he said this. Then he turned and stood squarely in front of Dracon. "Dracon do I have your consent to marry your sister?" Tal asked formally.

Dracon looked him in the face, "First, I think it's a little late to be asking that don't you think. Second, it would be my father you would ask not me. And I know you've had ample time to do so. Third, my sister loves you; my father respects you and is impressed by you. What need you of my permission? Besides if I said anything other than yes my life would be worth less than Jettenedon's. If my sister didn't kill me, my wife would be displeased with me. I might be the most powerful dragon wizard in the world but I'm not going up against them." And Dracon chuckled, "But if you feel that you need something then yes you have my permission. I've been with Karen, as she's been writing down all of this. I know what it took for you to do as she asked you to do. I know what it took for you to accept who you are. Karen's all most finished writing up this event but if I know her, she's going to pin you down and make you tell your story to her. Don't try to get out if it she won't let you.

And if you think she's fun just wait till you meet her grandmother. Like you I didn't stand a chance." Dracon gave another chuckle. "So are you satisfied or do you need something more?"

Tal slowly let a smile cross his face, "No, I think I got all I needed. I don't know why but I just didn't want to have people feeling like I was some intruder, I think."

"Let me ask you this. Do you love her?"

"With all of my heart, until that first kiss it was like I had been only half a wake."

"I know that feeling."

Both males looked at each other and started smiling like idiots, which is how Angel found them.

"What are you two smiling about?" Angel asked.

Tal took her into his arms for a firm hug as Dracon started to leave. "Tal just remembered that he needed to get MY permission to marry you." He said sarcastically.

"And..." Angel asked.

"What and have you make my life hell if I said no, are you crazy."

"Thanks big brother."

With that Dracon walked out of the cave as Tal leaned down and drew Angel into a kiss that of course became a whole lot more.

Both Dracon and Malazure had seen a very large group nearing the caves about a week later but after a quick fly by told them that it was Cal and the others. Though no one knew why there was such a large number. It was thought that it would take about three days until they got to the caves it was decided that Malazure and Angel would go and retrieve Karen's family and the padre. Tal wanted to go but thought that Sara would have taken the rest of the day to make them tell all that had happened as well as make them get married before they left the village. Karen knew her grandmother and knew she would do just that. They left that night so that they could get there just after the sun came up.

The people of Riversand were still surprised and somewhat frightened when they saw a large dragon standing in a field not far from the town. At first, they thought it was Dracon but then they realized that this dragon was larger and darker in color. The only thing that kept them from having fits was that they saw the strange little winged beauty. After a moment the dragon shimmered and shifted into the form of a human and walked towards one of the houses. To the surprise of Angel, Karen's mother Marion, looking somewhat tired, met her and Malazure at the door.